
You literally are what you eat. Food becomes your blood, cells and tissues. That means, food is directly impacting the way you feel and even the way you think. It all comes down to inflammation. Chronic inflammation compromises the immune system, may make the body attack itself, and left unchecked, can lead to heart attacks, strokes, Alzheimer’s, and even cancer.
You can discover your individual inflammatory culprits through simple food elimination and reintroduction. I know this firsthand! In my 30's I reversed lupus and arthritis. My book, Gutsy, has the info you need to do your own investigative sleuthing about gluten, dairy, and other top inflammatory foods. I'm excited to report that Gutsy just received a positive review from a news outlet covering the best in Southern Australia!
Did you know that gluten can be the secret catalyst behind lupus, MS, and other autoimmune diseases and symptoms? How about dairy as a root cause of joint pain/arthritis, rashes, excess mucous and even asthma? While each of us responds uniquely, some ingredients are universal inflammation triggers that need to be avoided: excess sugar, and vegetable and yellow seed oils–corn, soy, canola, safflower, sunflower.
Here are some tips to help you get started on your investigative journey. Once you feel better, play with adding the gluten and dairy back in for a few days and notice any symptoms in your body. Make sure you only add back one food at a time. Meanwhile, continue to limit sugar (the American Heart Association recommends limiting sugar to 6 teaspoons or 24 grams per day), and skip the inflammatory oils as much as possible.
- Eliminate milk and milk products, substituting other calcium sources like fortified nut milks and dark, leafy greens.
- Eliminate all gluten and gluten-containing products.
- Eliminate polyunsaturated vegetable oils, margarine, vegetable shortening, all partially hydrogenated oils, and all foods that might contain trans-fatty acids (such as deep-fried foods). Use extra virgin olive oil and/or avocado oil as your main fats.
- Add natural anti-inflammatories to your daily routine including: ginger, turmeric, omega-3 fatty acids (wild-caught Alaskan salmon and ground flaxseed are two sources), green tea and Moringa powder to add to smoothies or make into a tea (available through Amazon).
bloodstream? Women, on average, are exposed to 168 different chemical ingredients
daily in personal care and cosmetic products! Download a Pocket Guide to
Harmful Ingredients and cross check your products. And try 100% toxin free
products from Pure Haven, including their awesome Comfort Oil, which banishes many
inflammatory pains within seconds. You don't need chemicals for products to work!
Spinach Kuku
Kukus are delicious, spiced and herbal Persian frittatas. This one is gluten- and dairy-free and loaded with greens, herbs and healthy fats from olive oil and walnuts. They can be eaten any time of day.
Makes 12 large squares
Print Recipe
1 10 ounce package frozen spinach, thawed
2 t olive oil
1/4 large onion, thinly sliced
2 T garbanzo bean flour
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 t dried cumin
1 t dried coriander
1/4 c walnuts
1 large handful fresh parsley leaves, about 1 c
1 large handful fresh cilantro leaves, about 1 c
5 eggs
2 T olive oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees, convection oven setting preferably. Pour the 2 teaspoons olive oil into a saute pan and saute onions over medium heat until brown and caramelized, about 7-10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl combine first 5 dry ingredients and stir. Using hands, press thawed spinach in a colander to drain excess water. Add spinach to bowl with dry ingredient mixture and stir until well combined.
Into a blender pour the walnuts, fresh herbs and eggs. Blend until very well combined. Pour mixture into mixing bowl with spinach. Add caramelized onions and stir until evenly mixed in. Using a spatula, fold mixture into spinach until very well combined.
Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil into a 9" x 11" baking dish or brownie pan. Distribute evenly to coat bottom and sides of pan. Pour spinach mixture into pan, and use spatula to spread it evenly. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until center is just dry, not wet and loose.
Allow pan to cool. Cut into even squares. Enjoy!