Anti-Inflammatory Eating Plan

If you read my prior post, you know that my appointment with my Naturopath went well. I felt heard and valued; she then suggested I adopt an anti-inflammatory eating plan. After a few weeks of dragging my feet, this cereal-eating, peanut butter-loving girl bought the book, The Healing Kitchen that she suggested.

The book arrived in the mail the day that I received a still warm from the oven loaf of bread from my friend Nina. I sat down at the kitchen table, opened the book, and as the butter melted onto my snack-sized slice of toast, I read that in order for the diet to work, I had to cut out dairy, grains, eggs, night-shade vegetables, legumes, nuts, sugar, and alcohol. I almost cried.

I am the girl who buys French bread at the grocery store and rips a hunk off to eat on the way home. I wasn't happy, and like a child, I put the book on my desk and ignored it. But, after I pouted for a few weeks and ate bread and cereal for almost every meal, I cracked open the book and planned my first week.

The first week was difficult because I had to shop, plan and prep, and because I wasn't used to it, it seemed like I spent hours trapped in the kitchen. I don't like my kitchen enough to spend hours in there. It wasn't the prepping and cooking that I disliked; it was the clean-up. UGH!

But it became easier, and I felt better.

So, let me outline the benefits of going on an anti-inflammatory eating plan for a short time.

*This is not a forever diet.

*It is not a diet to lose weight. This eating plan is designed to heal the gut and discover what foods you are sensitive to.

Benefits

• You discover what foods you have a sensitivity to.

• Less gas and bloating.

• More energy.

• The book provides shopping lists.

• Weekly meal plans

• Easy to follow recipes.

• The recipes are full of fruits and vegtables=the vitamins that our bodies need.

• The book includes desserts, snacks, and drink recipes.

• Decreased joint pain.

• Plantain Chips are delicious and crunchy.

Drawbacks

• You can't eat your favorite foods for a short time.

• Coconut oil is the main cooking oil. I like the taste, but some do not.

• The process of adding foods back into one's diet is slow.

• There are 175+ recipes in the book, but my taste buds are bored. I need to find new recipes.

• You can't grab premade meals at the grocery store.

• There is a learning curve.

For example:

Last week I was hungry after my trip to the store, but instead of ripping a hunk of bread off the loaf, I cracked open a can of sardines. After the oil oozed from the tin and plopped on my seat, I decided that a tin of sardines packed in olive oil may not have been the wisest snack choice.

The "mac and cheese" recipe made with plantains called for a can of coconut cream. I purchased the sweetened can. My family suffered through sweet "macaroni and cheese" that evening.

Now that I've been on the eating plan for two months, I've discovered that I am sensitive to nightshade vegetables, nuts, yogurt, gluten, beans, and sulfites. No wonder my belly hurt, and I was bloated all the time!

So, dear reader, if you are having tummy issues, gas and bloating, and pain in your joints, I do recommend this book and going on an anti-inflammatory diet for a time.