Treat your body AND tickle your tastebuds

INFLAMMATION is the greatest health risk we all face, and lies at the root of many common and serious conditions — and here, in the fourth part of a unique series, one of the UK’s top dietitians explains how to reduce the risks. Her insight — and mouthwatering recipes — could transform your life.

Superfood is an overused term, often used as a marketing tool to promote the latest ‘new’ discovery. But there is no doubt in my mind that if not superfoods, everyday fresh fruits and vegetables are nature’s medicine — perfectly designed mouthfuls of goodness that help protect against chronic inflammation and the conditions it causes, including heart disease, arthritis, asthma, dementia, depression and even cancer.

It’s the antioxidants in fruits and vegetables that fight inflammation. They help to prevent or break down free radicals — unstable particles produced as natural by-products of our body’s metabolism, but also in response to sugary and highly processed foods, toxins, smoking and stress.

Left alone, free radicals can damage our cells and dNA, leading to inflammation, premature ageing and disease. By eating foods rich in antioxidants, we’re giving our bodies the tools they need to prevent disease-causing inflammation.

NHS guidelines state that we should eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, although recommendations are as high as ten in other countries. That can seem a daunting amount, so my advice is to focus on eating a good variety of fresh foods — and eat more vegetables than fruit for optimal nourishment.

Today, I reveal how to colour code your plate to ensure you get all the inflammation-fighting nutrients that your body will need from your food (see back page).

But first let me explain how meat fits into my anti-inflammation plan.

HOW TO EAT MEAT

ALTHougH this diet is packed with fresh vegetables and fruits, beans and pulses, wholegrains, healthy oils such as avocado oil and olive oil, nuts and seeds, it can still include some meat.

If you choose to add meat to that mix, that’s up to you — but it’s the quality and quantity of the meat you eat that makes a difference.

I would steer clear of meat that’s been ‘mucked around with’ — that includes processed meats and ready meals. The current advice is to limit our intake of processed meat and to keep our consumption of red meat to 500g or less a week.

Swap to inexpensive lean cuts — such as knuckles, hocks, oxtail and brisket — and use the meat to add flavour and goodness to dishes such as soups and pasta sauces; when preparing meals, think of meat as the side dish or even the sea

soning that adds extra flavour to a dish — the vegetables should be the star of your plate, so you benefit from their anti-inflammatory nutrients and fibre.

It’s worth adding that following a vegetarian or vegan diet isn’t the magic bullet that will make your body inflammation-free, especially if you rely on some of the foods you find in the freezer aisle — such as plant-based burgers, breaded veggie nuggets or faux-meat sausages — to make up your meals.

Many of these will contain the same additives as the meat versions and count as unhealthy ultraprocessed food, which, as I have previously explained, has been shown to directly raise inflammation in the body.

Suddenly switching to a vegetablepacked diet does come with a few side-effects, especially if you have a sensitive gut (see my cooking tips for minimising these on the back page). But if that is something you would like to do, here are some nutritious alternatives:

■ BeanS and pulses: These are packed with protein, needed for tissue repair in the body.

Make sure you cook the beans well before you add them to dishes and use just a few as they can cause bloating.

■ Kale and cabbage: Cruciferous vegetables such as these are renowned for their cancer-fighting compounds called phytochemicals.

Too much can cause wind, but you can cut down the quantity in dishes and substitute some of it with French beans and root vegetables instead, which are still packed with goodness but should be gentler on your gut.

Beans, greens and lentils, in particular, will help boost your intake of iron, a key nutrient to watch if you’re focusing on plantbased eating.

Vitamin C can help the body absorb iron from plant sources, so add some fresh lemon slices or juice to a glass of water to sip as you eat, or add some freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice over a dish before you serve it.