I've been wanting to do another blog on food for a while now, so what better excuse than the awareness month for fruits and veggies: June! Whether you have Interstitial Cystitis, Vulvodynia, or just plain stomach issues, your diet heavily impacts your comfort level throughout the day and finding acceptable foods to eat is a never ending challenge. Thus, I want to shed some light on what foods cause inflammation, what lowers it, and what supplements you can feel good about consuming at the start or end of your day.
First off, let's discuss what foods are considered the most inflammatory to your system. It's generally agreed upon that artificial trans fats contained in fried fast foods, sweets made from sugar or high-fructose corn syrup, vegetable and seed oils, refined carbohydrates like bread and pasta, excessive alcohol, and processed meats (think hot dogs and bacon) cause the most inflammation to the body due to the additives put in them to increase shelf life. The easiest way to avoid these if of course to avoid processed food altogether and cook more at home. Some people don't have the time to cook daily or the money to buy organic, but the way I see it, every little bit counts, so make whatever small changes you can to invest in a healthier future for yourself.
Secondly, there are luckily foods which lower the body's inflammation, woohoo! These include berries, fatty fish, broccoli, avocados, green tea, peppers, mushrooms, grapes, turmeric, extra virgin olive oil, dark chocolate or cocoa, tomatoes, and cherries. So what do you notice the most in this list? That's right, fruits and vegetables. I find it easier to eat lots of anti-inflammatory foods than to completely cut out inflammatory ones, so I find a good balance among these. I can't eat cocoa, tomatoes, or peppers due to the high acidity, so I have to avoid those ones, but I consume the rest when I can to counteract the frozen dinners and ice cream I eat. It's all about finding out which foods trigger you and which ones calm your system down. I tried the raved about oxalate free diet for my Vulvodynia and it did nothing for me. Some of the healthiest foods I consume, such as spinach, are oxalates, so it's hard to want to give those up when they are providing me with needed nutrients. That's why I say you do you!
In addition to watching your diet, I recommend checking out Desert Harvest for aloe vera based vitamins, the Vitamin Shoppe for moringa, and West Coast Mint for all kinds of supplements to help with digestion. Aloe vera is great for your digestion and preventing UTI's because it's antibacterial, antifungal, antibiotic, analgesic, anesthetic, antiseptic, anti-viral, anti-microbial, and anti-inflammatory. It contains acemannan, which is a polysaccharide chain of mannose molecules, and mannose stops bacteria from sticking to the wall of the bladder. It also naturally has anthraquinones in it which must be removed before you drink it or swallow it in pill form, since it's a carcinogen. What's nice about Desert Harvest's products is that they don't contain any fillers or additives, like many other aloe vera brands do, so you know what you are consuming is safe.
Moringa is a tree that grows in India, Asia, Africa, and South America. It goes by the names drumstick tree, ben oil tree, horseradish tree, or miracle tree and has antidepressant, antifungal, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties. It's loaded with nutrients (like the longest list you've ever seen) and seems to treat or prevent just about everything, from bacterial diseases to cancer, so I'm pretty hooked on it. I use it in powder form added to my smoothie about twice a week. The stuff was recommended to me in the program I follow for my Gastroparesis, but I never got a chance to purchase any until I stumbled upon it at a farmer's market on vacation in Florida. The woman selling it was from Africa and I knew what I was buying from her was the real deal, so I felt comfortable with my purchase.
I recently started steeping West Coat Mint's cut and sifted Marshmallow Root and drinking it as a tea at night. It's really helped with my inflammation! I can take it right after dilating and instantly tell a difference in how enflamed my tissues are. Marshmallow root has a sticky residue called mucilage which coats your digestive tract and moves things along. It can also help with coughs, skin irritation, wound healing, pain relief, and work as an antioxidant, a diuretic, and promote heart health. Why wouldn't you want to use this stuff?! It does need to steep longer than a typical tea, and be covered in the process, but it's easy to start it, walk away, and come back, so you don't waste time waiting around for it to be ready. It has a nice earthy flavor that is pretty neutral, making it easy to drink late at night.
Want to follow some gut friendly Instagram accounts? I recommend @icfood4u and @agutsygirl for advice and recipes that are good for your gut. I will make another recipe post soon in case you want to try anything I make at home yourself. There's nothing like eating a tasty home cooked meal done well, when it's fresh, and then again leftover! It's amazing what a new diet and vitamin regimen can do for your life, sleeping and waking. I hope you find solace in discovering your secret solution to what ails you.