SAMPLE ANTI;
INFLAMMATORY MENU
Breakfast
Overnight oats with honey,
coconut milk, vanilla protein
powder.
Snack
Banana with almond butter.
Lunch
Salad with walnuts, strawberries,
two hard-boiled eggs, pomegranate vinegar, olive oil, sea salt.
Snack
Rice cake with guacamole.
Dinner
Salmon with gluten-free and
dairy-free stu;ed mushrooms,
baked sweet potato fries.
Dessert
Vanilla coconut ice cream.—SN
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according to the Journal of Obesity. Laska,
for example, lost ;;; pounds after she
eliminated in;ammatory foods and has
maintained her weight consistently for
more than ;ve years. “Mental clarity, more
energy and pain-free temples were the
most notable e;ects I experienced on the
AI diet,” says Laska, the author of Dirty,
Lazy, Keto (independently published, ;;;;;
not available at Costco).
Maggie Battista, of Boston, lost ;;
pounds while eating nutrient-dense foods
and got rid of chronic joint pain with the AI
elimination diet (identifying and excluding
foods that trigger in;ammation). “I’m way
more mindful about my food choices and
feel better now than I did in my ;;s,” says
Battista, the author of Food, Gift, Love
(Houghton Mi;in Harcourt, ;;;;; not
available at Costco).
Foods and supplements
“Eat low-fat protein with a lot of vegetables and limited amounts of fruits, and only
use small amounts of monounsaturated fats.
Your best ‘drug’ to treat in;ammation is an
anti-in;ammatory diet coupled with omega-;
fatty acid supplementation,” says Sears.
Include foods like cruciferous vegetables,
tomatoes, leafy greens, peppers, deep-
colored fruits, sweet potatoes, whole grains,
(almonds and walnuts), dark chocolate,
herbs and spices. Avoid processed foods,
re;ned carbs, trans fats, alcohol, sugary
beverages and greasy foods.
Is it the right diet for you?
As with medications, eliminating or
including certain foods may work better
for some people than for others. “I encourage food sensitivity testing over a general
anti-in;ammatory diet, because some foods
touted as anti-in;ammatory can still cause
in;ammation,” says Michigan-based
registered dietitian Jennifer Smith. Since
food sensitivities vary among individuals,
think about working with a doctor to tailor
an AI diet that works for you.
Time frame
Although the AI diet is not a quick-;x
treatment, it o;ers gradual and steady
results. Smith says people following the diet
should avoid in;ammatory foods for at least
six months. “However, most people see results
on this diet after seven to ;; days,” she adds.
With the plethora of anti-in;ammatory
food options that are available, following an
AI diet is not di;cult, says New York–based
Costco member Melissa Eboli, certi;ed
nutrition counselor and culinary nutrition
expert. “Follow it for three weeks, and I
doubt you’ll want to go back to your old
habits once you feel better,” she says.
Can restricted foods be reintroduced?
Stop eating in;ammatory foods to keep
in;ammation under control. “You never
recover from in;ammation; you only
manage it. The foods you took out of your
diet were most likely the same foods that
caused diet-induced in;ammation in the
;rst place,” says Sears.
An AI diet is not a magical panacea, but
it may help to alleviate pain and put you on
the road to long-term good health.
