include fatigue and insomnia, skin conditions, muscle and joint pain, frequent infections, depression, anxiety and mood disorders, and gastrointestinal problems.
Fortunately, changes to what we eat will have a profound, lasting effect on inflammation, reducing triggers and helping diminish symptoms. And we’re not talking complicated food plans with expensive, hard-tofind ingredients. I’ve devised delicious recipes you’ll want to cook time and time again – and they’re all easy to make with accessible, affordable ingredients.
This eating plan isn’t about denial
We know that highly processed foods cause inflammation, but many natural ingredients actually fight the effects of inflammation happening in our body and actively work to protect our cells. Add these antiinflammatory standbys to your shopping list so that you always have them to hand. You’ll just need to add fresh fruit or veg for a healthy meal in minutes.
n n n n and deprivation. There are some foods I’ll ask you to reduce or cut out, including ultra-processed takeaways, ready meals and junk food that’s crammed with additives, fat and empty calories. In their place, I want you to cook from scratch where possible, with fresh fruit, vegetables, wholegrains, beans, pulses, lean meat and healthy fats. I’ll also be showing how you can add even more taste and goodness to your meals with herbs, spices and seasonings that are renowned for their anti-inflammatory properties.
This isn’t a weight-loss diet, but a happy outcome for many people following it will be that they will naturally lose excess pounds – pounds that, in a vicious cycle, lead n n n n n to greater risk of inflammationrelated diseases. So not only will you reduce the number of inflammatory foods you eat, you’ll also make your body less prone to further inflammation in the process.
Today and over the coming week exclusively in the Daily Mail, you can find recipes for breakfasts, lunches, suppers, puddings, drinks and snacks. Plus, I’ve shared insight and advice from my three decades of experience in looking after people, young and old, with cancer, dementia and inflammatory diseases.
The principles of the anti-inflammatory diet are straightforward – see my key rules to remember, right. Stick with them, make the change and start future-proofing your and your family’s health today. n n n n n n
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Oats Frozen berries Eggs Nuts and seeds Dried fruit Fresh herbs – wash, chop and freeze them in ice cube trays Garlic Ginger – grate and freeze Beans and pulses, such as chickpeas, lentils and butter beans – these can be either dried or tinned Brown rice
Ditch ‘ultraprocessed’ foods. These are made with ingredients (and additives) you wouldn’t use if you were cooking at home. Here in the UK the most commonly eaten ultra-processed foods are industrial-made bread, ready meals, breakfast cereals, sausages and reconstituted meat products. Biscuits, pastries, cakes, soft drinks and crisps are also ultra-processed.
Also drastically reduce the amount of ‘processed’ foods you eat – this is food that’s been smoked or undergone some other change. It includes products such as bacon, smoked meat, salted and sugared nuts and tinned fruit in syrup – these should be a rare addition to a meal, rather than a staple food or snack.
Eat a rainbow of fresh fruit and veg and swap to wholegrains.
Fresh produce is packed with antioxidants and phytochemicals, compounds that help to repair damaged cells, but different fruits and veg contain different ones and they give foods their various colours. The wider the range of colourful fresh food you eat, the more of these you’ll absorb – I’ll explain in more detail in the Mail next week. And swap white pasta, bread, biscuits and cakes for wholegrains which have anti-inflammatory benefits.
Limit your red meat intake to no more than 500g a week – that’s around three portions. Choose unprocessed cuts and mince, rather than sausages and bacon. And cut back on saturated and animal fats. These are linked to a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, certain cancers and dementia.
Think of meat as the side dish or even the seasoning 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.
Swap a few of your usual daily brews with a cup of green or white tea (from health food shops). These teas contain EGCG, a type of powerful antioxidant that studies show can reduce inflammation.
Eat 1 to 2 portions of oily fish a week and snack on unsalted nuts and seeds. This will boost your levels of omega 3 essential fatty acids, which reduce inflammation, protect the heart and improve mental health.
Shy away from sugar, and if you must have a sugary treat, combine it with protein or enjoy a dessert after a main meal. Too much of the sweet stuff is associated with inflammation and risk of insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and obesity. Eating sugar with protein or after a main meal will slow the release of sugar into the bloodstream to dampen the inflammatory response.
Choose red wine over white. Red contains polyphenols, compounds that reduce inflammatory activity. Have no more than 14 units a week.
Add prebiotics and probiotics to your daily diet. These boost the number of healthy bacteria in the gut, improving symptoms of inflammatory bowel conditions. They can also improve symptoms of conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. I’ll explain in more detail next week, but good sources of prebiotics include onions, asparagus, chickpeas and oats. Probiotics are found in fermented food such as sauerkraut, pickles and live yoghurt, as well as cheeses.