Now that we have an idea of what pro-inflammatory lifestyle behaviors are from my previous blog post, https://smwellnesscoaching.com/blog/what-contributes-to-a-pro-inflammatory-lifestyle, let’s go over some well-established anti-inflammatory interventions that may help lower inflammation or remove inflammatory influences.  Again, many of these are common sense as are many healthy behaviors. 

Top 7 Anti-Inflammatory Lifestyle Strategies

Here are my favorite top 7 anti-inflammatory strategies.  How many can you begin to incorporate into your daily practices? 

• Reduce added sugars, high glycemic foods and packaged and processed foods.  Choose whole foods and foods with few ingredients - think less than 3. 
• Eat an abundance and variety of plants, including leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli, cauliflower and Brussel sprouts, and berries and other lower glycemic fruits, as well as nuts and seeds.
• Aim for fiber consumption in the range of 25-35 grams per day or more.  
• Don’t overdo it on added fats, particularly those that are from poor quality sources and those that are damaged (think fried and processed foods).  Include high quality sources of fats include olive oil, avocado, avocado oil, coconut oil, ghee, butter and nuts and seeds.
• Consider whether there are any foods that are allergenic or that you may be sensitive to which may be contributing to an inflammatory response in your body.  Common food sensitivities and allergies are triggered by gluten, dairy, lactose, nuts and eggs.  
• Get some sunshine to boost Vitamin D levels and consider supplementing if your Vitamin D lab values are low.  If you do not know your Vitamin D values, request that your physician order lab work at your next visit. 
• Movement!  Exercise is key for maintaining a healthy metabolism and muscle mass which lowers inflammation and improves insulin sensitivity.

If you would like to discuss ways that I may be able to help guide you in implementing some of these anti-inflammatory interventions, please reach out to me!