Introduction 1
About This Book 1
Foolish Assumptions 3
Icons Used in This Book 3
Where to Go from Here 4
Part 1: Taking the Mystery Out of Inflammation 5
Chapter 1: Inflammation, Food, and You 7
Defining What Inflammation Is 7
Understanding how the immune system responds 8
Seeing where inflammation goes wrong 9
Differentiating between acute and chronic inflammation 11
Gut reactions: Linking food, digestion, and the immune system 13
Treating Your Symptoms with Nutrition 15
Creating a diet that works for you 15
Eating right for long-term benefits 15
Supplementing Your Diet with an Anti-Inflammation Lifestyle 16
Chapter 2: Understanding How Food Can Be Your Body’s Enemy 19
Defining Toxic Foods 20
Looking at Allergies and Specific Sensitivities 21
Understanding food allergies and sensitivities 23
Addressing lactose intolerance 24
Confronting sugar and caffeine sensitivity 25
Watching wheat: Looking at celiac disease and gluten sensitivity 26
Getting Tested for Allergies and Sensitivities 28
Working within Your Food Limits to Avoid Inflammation 30
Understanding the Role of Environmental Toxicity 31
Eating Clean to Ward Off Inflammation 33
Chapter 3: Determining Inflammation’s Role in Chronic Diseases 35
Understanding Chronic Diseases 36
Connecting Heart Disease, Obesity, and Diabetes to Inflammation 38
Heart disease: Affecting heart function 38
Obesity: Adding extra pounds 41
Diabetes: Wreaking havoc with your blood sugar 44
Striking the Brain: Neurodegenerative Disease and Inflammation 46
Examining Alzheimer’s disease 46
Probing Parkinson’s disease 48
Investigating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) 49
Assessing Huntington’s disease 50
Contributing to Cancer 50
Altering the Mind with Inflammation 51
Examining depression 52
Looking closer at bipolar disorder 53
Eyeing schizophrenia 54
Asthma: Inflaming the Lungs 54
Disrupting Your Digestive System 55
Knocking Your Immune System Off-Kilter 56
Getting to know lupus 57
Arthritis: Making your joints ache 58
Nerve attacks: Linking inflammation to multiple sclerosis 60
Part 2: Deciphering Anti-Inflammatory Nutrition 61
Chapter 4: Filling Your Plate to Fight Inflammation 63
Following Recommendations for Good and Bad Food Categories 64
Adapting General Food Recommendations for Your Needs 65
Herbs and spices: Going beyond the five food groups 67
Creating the anti-inflammatory food pyramid 68
Finding your way to fermented foods 73
Implementing the Anti-Inflammation Plan 76
Chapter 5: Making the Right Diet Choice for You 77
Taking a Closer Look at Diets and Making Them Work 78
Reducing Carbs — The Ketogenic Diet 78
Considering what it is and how it works 79
Taking the inflammation out 80
Eating like a Caveman (or Cavewoman) — The Paleo Diet 81
Making sure it’s right for you 81
Keeping inflammation out of it 82
Giving Up Animals — Vegetarian and Vegan Lifestyle 82
Warding off the stereotypes 83
Making the right choices 83
Chapter 6: Feeling the Love (or Hate) in Fats 85
Getting the Message: Fat, Inflammation, and Cell Signals 86
Exploring Different Kinds of Fat 86
Identifying unsaturated fats 87
Seeing the bad in (most) saturated fats 87
The worst of the bunch: Avoiding trans fats 89
Identifying the Best Fat Sources 89
Getting your fair share of essential fatty acids: Omega-3 and omega-6 90
Getting to the meat of the issue: Animal fats 91
Finding other good fats in your diet 93
Chapter 7: Conquering Carbohydrates 95
Understanding the Role of Carbohydrates 96
Types of Carbs: Comparing Simple and Complex Carbohydrates 97
Keeping Carbs in Check to Help Inflammation 98
The not-so-simple truth about simple carbs 98
Steering clear of refined carbs 99
Watching for the sugar rush: The glycemic index and glycemic load 100
Going complex and unrefined 101
Calculating your carb needs 102
Choosing Your Carb Sources 102
Adding great grains to your diet 103
Stocking up on the right fruits and veggies 104
Checking the labels on packaged foods 108
Chapter 8: Getting the Right Kinds of Protein 109
Looking at Protein’s Role in the Body 110
Considering Your Protein Sources 110
A meat-eater’s menu: Including animal sources 111
Taking it to the sea: Fish and seafood 112
Trying the vegetarian variety 112
Getting the Balance Right 114
Chapter 9: Indulging in Sweets 117
Connecting Sugars and Sweeteners to Inflammation 118
Artificial sweeteners 118
Refined sugars 119
Natural sweeteners 120
Eating Less Sugar 121
Giving In to Your Sweet Tooth 122
Getting natural sugars from fruit 122
Finding ways to enjoy processed sweets 123
Part 3: Enjoying Recipes for Less Inflammation and Better Health 125
Chapter 10: Starting the Day off Right: Unbeatable Breakfasts 127
Simple Starts: Smoothies and Yogurts 128
Sweetening Toasts, Cereals, and More 135
Enjoying Savory Egg Breakfasts 142
Chapter 11: Something on the Side: Appetizers and Snacks 149
Making Dips Everyone Enjoys 150
Choosing Vegan Cheeses for Cheesy Appetizers 157
Whipping Up Seafood Starters 161
Enjoying Stuffed Starters and Wraps 168
Setting Out Simple Snacks 174
Chapter 12: Bringing Out the Bowls: Soups 179
Finding Variety in Vegetarian Soups 179
Making Soups with an Asian Twist 190
Cooking Some Hearty Chicken Soup 193
Chapter 13: Keeping It Light: Salads 195
Starring Greens and Other Veggies 196
Making a Meal of Salads with Meat or Seafood 204
Fixing Bean Salads 211
Chapter 14: Making the Main Course: Basic Entrees 215
Packing Vegetarian Dishes Full of Flavor 216
Serving Up Poultry and Seafood Entrees 223
Chapter 15: Cranking Your Entrees Up a Notch 231
Making Main Dishes Special 232
Preparing Vegetarian Entrees that Pop 247
Chapter 16: Topping It Off: Desserts 251
Refreshing Desserts: Smoothies, Parfaits, and More 252
Going Traditional with Cookies, Rice Pudding, and Baked Fruit Desserts 257
Satisfying Your Craving for Chocolate 263
Part 4: Living an Anti-Inflammatory Lifestyle 267
Chapter 17: Making Home Cooking Less Inflammatory 269
Stocking an Anti-Inflammatory Kitchen 270
Flour, sugar, and other baking supplies 270
Fats and cooking oils 272
Dry goods 274
Canned foods 275
Refrigerated items 276
Fruits and vegetables 276
Beverages 277
Choosing the Right Cooking Methods 278
Baking meats, veggies, and more 279
Steaming things up 280
Poaching delicate foods 280
Healthy frying methods 281
Other methods: Grilling, broiling, and microwaving 281
Making Favorite Dishes Less Inflammatory 282
Using this for that: Healthy substitutions in main dishes and sides 282
Staying sweet 283
Chapter 18: Keeping Your Cool When Dining Out 285
Choosing a Restaurant 285
Planning Your Order 286
Reading menus and nutritional information 288
Considering substitutions and special orders 289
Finding Anti-Inflammatory Foods at Restaurants 290
Choosing appetizers and main courses 290
Drinking for health 292
Getting your just (and good-for-you) desserts 292
Exploring Food Options by Restaurant Type 293
Deciding on fast food 293
Choosing ethnic fare 294
Keeping Portions Under Control 295
Chapter 19: Looking at Prescription-Drug Alternatives and Supplements 297
Treating Inflammation with Over-the-Counter Medication 298
Exploring how anti-inflammatory drugs work 299
Navigating your way through over-the-counter drugs 299
Using aspirin for heart disease: Take two and call me in the morning 300
Pointing to the Positive Side of Probiotics 301
Examining how probiotics work 301
Raising the levels of “good” bacteria 302
Using Dietary Supplements to Fill in the Nutritional Gaps 303
Taking vitamins as a defense against inflammation 303
Finding the benefits of fish oil tablets 305
Getting a boost from mighty magnesium 306
Taking herbal supplements and spices 307
Choosing Dietary Supplements Wisely 308
Getting some professional guidance 308
Understanding labels 310
Considering quality standards 310
Chapter 20: Making Strides against Inflammation 313
Fighting Inflammation with Cardiovascular Activity 313
Starting off simply with walking and swimming 314
Get it going good: Stimulating exercises 315
Slowing it down: Relaxing moves 317
Finding Stress Relief in Meditation and Yoga 319
Centering yourself through meditation 319
Going with the flow: Enjoying yoga 321
Part 5: The Part of Tens 325
Chapter 21: Ten Benefits of Stopping Inflammation in Its Tracks 327
Making You Feel Happier 328
Staying Sharp 329
Lowering Your Risk of Heart and Cardiovascular Disease 329
Decreasing Your Cholesterol Levels 329
Decreasing Your Risk of Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome 330
Losing Weight 330
Strengthening Your Bones 331
Decreasing Your Risk of Autoimmune Disorders 331
Affecting Risk and Ability to Fight Cancer 332
Improving Fertility 332
Chapter 22: Ten Inflammation-Fighting Foods 333
Salmon 333
Flaxseeds 334
Blueberries 335
Natural Almonds 335
Mushrooms 336
Broccoli 336
Quinoa 337
Brussels Sprouts 337
Onions 338
Green Tea 338
Chapter 23: Ten Anti-Inflammatory Supplements and Herbs 339
Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Mixed EPA and DHA from Fish Oils 340
Ginger 340
Turmeric/Curcumin 341
NAC (N-Acetyl Cysteine) 342
Zinc 343
Boswellia 343
Vitamin D 344
Vitamin C 345
Papain 346
Coenzyme Q10 347
Appendix A: Metric Conversion Guide 349
Index 353
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