If you are fighting with joint pain, the diet you eat may have a significant impact on how you feel each day. A good first step to transitioning to an anti-inflammatory diet is to learn what foods and beverages to try and cut out of your diet.
Below, you can learn about some foods that can promote inflammation, and which you may want to avoid.
As another quick tip before we jump into the list, an easy way to fight inflammation is to add a healthy supplement to your daily diet such as the highly-rated PRIMAL Joint Support Supplement by Eu Natural.
This supplement contains natural inflammation-fighting ingredients like Boswellia Serrata, Celadrin, Turmeric Curcumin, Zinc, Vitamin E, Selenium, Riboflavin, and Vitamin D.
Now, let’s talk about foods you should eat less of or avoiding eating if you want to lower inflammation in your body.
1. Refined carbohydrates
One of the top things to avoid on an anti-inflammatory diet is any type of refined carbohydrate, and any foods which are rich in carbs.
Both sugar and high fructose corn syrup can promote inflammation and contribute to inflammatory health conditions.
Diets which are high in carbohydrates also can lead to weight gain and associated cardiovascular health problems.
Once you reduce your carbohydrate intake and switch to a healthy fats and proteins as your energy sources, inflammation in your body should decrease, and you should also have an easier time maintaining or losing weight.
2. Sweetened beverages
While it is pretty easy to think of sugary foods to avoid, it is easy to forget about what we drink. A lot of carbonated beverages are sweetened with sugar or high fructose corn syrup, and many fruit juices also contain significant amounts of sugar.
Consider moderating your intake of fruit juices, and avoiding sugary sodas altogether. If you do drink sodas, look for those which are sweetened with stevia or another natural, healthy, safe sweetener.
3. Foods fried in vegetable oil
A lot of us grew up eating foods which were fried in “vegetable oil” as a “healthy” alternative to butter.
Usually, “vegetable oil” is soybean oil, which has a short shelf life, is high in trans fats, and promotes inflammation.
If you want to reduce inflammation in your body, you should avoid eating foods which are fried in vegetable oil if you can.
Consider eating air-fried foods as an alternative, or at least opting for healthier oils.
4. Margarine
Something else which was promoted as a “healthy” alternative to butter is margarine.
Margarine, however, is high in inflammatory trans fats, and is best avoided. It is much better to simply stick with butter or ghee.
5. Processed meats
While avoiding carbohydrates, you will probably end up eating a lot more meat than you used to.
But you will want to make sure that you do not overdo it when it comes to eating processed meats, which contain inflammatory compounds called advanced glycation end products (AGEs).
So, consider cutting back on sausages, bacon, jerky, and so forth.
6. Trans fats
Also known on food labels as “partially hydrogenated oils,” these fats drive up inflammation in your body, increasing your chances of developing inflammatory conditions, or worsening those you already have. There are also bad for cardiovascular health.
Even though a lot of people now know that they should be avoiding trans fats, they continue to be added to prepackaged foods.
Disturbingly, you may not even know that there are trans fats in some of the foods you purchase (particularly vegetable oil).
Even though hypothetically food manufacturers have to list them, there is a loophole.
So long as there is no more than half a gram of trans fats per serving, a manufacturer can claim on the food label that the product contains “zero” trans fats.
What constitutes a serving? Whatever the manufacturer chooses. So, through clever designation of serving sizes, a manufacturer can hypothetically declare that any food contains “zero” trans fats.
Your best bet is to avoid vegetable oil and be extremely selective about any prepackaged foods you buy.
7. Alcohol
Research has shown that excessive alcohol intake can increase inflammatory markers. So, if you drink a lot, you might want to consider cutting back on how much you imbibe. This will probably have other health benefits as well.
Replace Inflammatory Foods With Anti-Inflammatory Foods
Now you know what foods and beverages to avoid. As mentioned previously, taking a supplement for inflammation like PRIMAL Joint Support & Healthy Inflammation by Eu Natural is a good further way to improve your diet. You can also eat more leafy green vegetables, fruits, nuts, and fatty fish. All of these have anti-inflammatory properties which can further support joint health.
