What is the safest and most powerful form of medicine?

Jeanna Anglin

“The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison.” – Ann Wigmore

This quote opened my eyes to a fresh way of looking at my food choices. It’s either one or the other.

What’s in your refrigerator? Your pantry? Your grocery shopping cart? Our choices determine whether our bodies are being nourished to promote good health or slowly poisoned.

The typical American diet contains processed “foods” that our body perceives as an inflammatory assault. Inflammation is a natural function that helps our body heal. It is our immune system’s response to injuries, such as a cut finger, or invaders like bacteria or viruses. However, when we consume food-like substances that have added sugar and chemicals, our body treats these as dangerous invaders. When low-grade inflammation from lifestyle choices lasts for months, it becomes chronic inflammation and can cause sickness.

From the Piedmont.org online article, “8 ways to reduce chronic inflammation”,

Chronic inflammation symptoms can include:
• Fatigue
• Insomnia
• Body or joint pain
• Anxiety, depression, or other mood disorders
• Frequent infections
• Frequent acid reflux (heartburn), constipation or diarrhea
• Weight loss or weight gain

Chronic inflammation has also been linked to serious health conditions like heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic kidney disease, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

What causes chronic inflammation?

Corey Tolbert, RD, LD, a licensed and registered dietitian at Piedmont, says chronic inflammation can be caused by:

Eating a diet high in sugar, refined carbohydrates, processed foods, fried foods, alcohol, trans fats, red meat, and processed meat

• Smoking
• Obesity
• Stress
• Lack of sleep
• Overexercising
• Autoimmune diseases like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis
• Overuse of antibiotics, antacids, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs (including ibuprofen, naproxen sodium and aspirin)

What’s the good news?

The good news is that our lifestyle choices can positively impact our health. We can take steps to address the causes of chronic inflammation as well as add in the healing foods that have anti-inflammatory properties. Consider these tips from the following experts:

Cleveland Clinic’s online article, “Inflammation”:

How can I prevent inflammation?

You may decrease your risk of chronic inflammation by developing healthy lifestyle habits. Some of these habits include:

• Achieving and maintaining healthy weight.
• Avoiding or quitting smoking.
• Exercising three to five times per week at least (daily exercise is best).
• Limiting your alcohol intake (maximum two ounces per day).
• Managing stress with healthy tools such as meditation or journaling.

What can I do at home for inflammation treatment?

Eating too much of certain foods may increase inflammation. If you have chronic inflammation, you may feel better if you avoid:
• Fried foods, including many fast-food items.
• Cured meats with nitrates, such as hot dogs.
• Highly refined oils and trans fats.
• Refined carbohydrates, such as sugar, pastries, or white bread.
Harvard Health Publishing’s online article, “Foods that fight inflammation”,

Anti-inflammatory foods
• Tomatoes
• Olive oil
• Green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, kale, and collards.
• Nuts like almonds and walnuts.
• Fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, tuna, and sardines.
• Fruits such as strawberries, blueberries, cherries, and oranges.

These healing foods are easy to obtain and delicious. I make it a point to have all of them in our home (refrigerator, freezer or pantry). I am thankful that my husband enjoys cooking. He will browse our food supply and create something wonderful. Recently, when I complimented him on making such a healthy meal, he commented that it’s easy to do when all the options are healthy. Hmm, it hasn’t always been that way in our home. It’s been a process. As we learned healthier ways, we took the steps to replace the harmful, processed items with God-given natural food. We choose to spend our money on food and drinks that provide nourishment because we value our health. Although quality food may cost a little more than junk food, good health is not expensive. However, being sick ... that’s costly.

It’s vital to choose lifestyle habits that support good health and decrease chronic inflammation. The easiest place to start is with our grocery cart. As always, educate yourself and read the labels. Ditch the toxic substances that are slowly poisoning us and purchase the anti-inflammatory foods that are truly the safest and most powerful form of medicine.

Jeanna Anglin is a health coach residing in Putnam County who supports individuals and small groups in making lifestyle changes to improve their health. Jeannaanglin.com