Fun with Food

As a yogi, I’ve always been interested in the alchemy of eating. I’ve fasted, tried a variety of diets from carnivorous to vegetarian to raw. I’ve used food as medicine and, more recently have explored a few different approaches to what’s called an anti-inflammation diet.

For Lyme Disease, one of the few proactive actions anyone can take is to eat a diet that promotes healing and won’t aggravate the condition. But the anti-inflammation diet is touted to be good for many more things including weight loss, arthritis, allergies, joint pain and any of a plethora of inflammation disorders.

At a recent visit to a neurologist, I was given the name of a book with yet another take on the diet. The book is The Inflammation Free Diet Plan, by Monica Reinagel. The doctor told me that while he tries to be as unbiased as possible, he is completely biased about this diet. So I went out, got myself a copy and started to read.

At first it seemed daunting. It seemed there was so much to learn, so much to keep track of, and all these new values and figures to add up. As it turns out, there are actually only about 40 pages to read (an easy and interesting read) and the rest is reference charts. It’s not difficult at all. To make it even easier, I made a spreadsheet on my computer to keep track of my intake. I rather enjoy trying to keep my scores in range of my goals. It’s become sort of a game for me to see how great a rating I can come up with while still enjoying my meals and feeling full.

I love a wide variety of food. That makes any diet a lot easier because I only have to choose between something I love and something else I love. This diet is basically the opposite of the Standard American Diet. If you’re serious about your health, you’ll want to stay away from fast foods, highly processed foods and deep fried foods. That said, in all fairness I must add that there is hardly anything you can’t have on this diet - it’s just that you will want to choose with discretion and eat foods to create the anti-inflammation balance you’re after.

As I write this, I am on the road, traveling to Alaska for the summer. I am in Northeastern Montana right now and so far I have had no difficulty staying on the diet while traveling, including an occasional restaurant meal.

Like ayurveda, and yoga, it’s about living a life in balance. The more you practice it, the better you feel, and the easier it gets.