In 2011, I created the definitive guide to understanding inflammation and its link to chronic disease. I wanted to educate readers on how inflammation was affecting their health, and how food is the most powerful healer available to us. To do that, I wrote Meals That Heal Inflammation—a book that explains in detail the causes and effects of the body’s inflammatory response. I also provided recipes so readers could learn that delicious, healing food belonged in their kitchens and their lives.
After the book was released, I was overjoyed by the hundreds of e-mails I received from readers who found their painful symptoms were going away. By eliminating inflammatory choices, people reported their arthritis pain was down, skin conditions cleared up, depression lifted, and swelling disappeared. What’s more, I received hundreds of testimonials from readers who tried the MTHI plan and lost weight without dieting. Based on that response, I decided to take the concepts that were in the original book and put the focus on weight loss, which is a concern for so many of us today. I began to develop a new meal plan called Slimming Meals That Heal, and saw great results: my nutritional coaching clients went on to lose 25, 45, even 100 pounds.
When I first met her on The Marilyn Denis Show, 52-year-old Marg Stahlbaum was not able to walk up a flight of stairs without pain. During her first nine months on the SMTH plan, she went from 295 to 194 pounds. Marg says she loves that the SMTH plan is flexible and works with her busy life. As Marg’s swelling went down she regained full mobility, increasing her ability to take on extensive exercise for the first time in years. Within 4 months of starting the program, she ran her first 5-kilometer race. However, what she says has made her happiest is a renewed self-confidence that she shares with her children and grandchildren.
In his wildly successful book, Wheat Belly, Dr. William Davis inspired a grain-free revolution by focusing on the fattening influence of wheat. He explained how wheat is more inflammatory when a person is intolerant or allergic to its complex protein, called gluten. In a similar vein, Slimming Meals That Heal examines the relationship between food allergies, inflammation, and weight gain. SMTH deepens the reader’s understanding of how food can hurt or heal. Expanding on MTHI, I’ve covered topics such as the cleansing and healing powers of superfoods and techniques that directly reduce cravings. You’ll learn how to boost metabolism and balance hormones with a five-step plan that will assist in you reaching what I call your “vitality weight”—the natural, balanced weight where you’re healthy and thriving and have energy to burn!
What many scientists and researchers are now beginning to appreciate is the role inflammation plays in weight gain. For starters, inflammation can make you resistant to certain hormones, in particular to insulin, a hormone secreted by the pancreas. Excess consumption of carbohydrates causes your cells to become resistant to insulin. During insulin resistance, the pancreas tries to compensate by producing more of the hormone. Thus, inflammation causes the pancreas to exhaust itself, sort of like a machine that is never turned off, and become a super-mega-duper insulin-producing factory. And insulin not only reduces blood glucose levels, it also makes you gain weight.
Inflammation also makes you resistant to leptin, a hormone that is secreted in adipose (fatty) tissue and promotes satiety. As a result, when you experience abnormal inflammation you have a greater chance of suffering from huge food cravings.
An excess of fat tissue leads to a higher production and secretion of the pro-inflammatory compounds called adipokines, which recruit immune cells that release nasty reactive oxygen species (ROS). The result is major tissue damage (especially in the adipose tissue), pain, and internal swelling that ultimately contribute to obesity-related diseases. The association between inflammation, obesity, and even diabetes is so strong that it is known as the “inflammation-diabesity” connection (obesity + diabetes = diabesity).
For your health and your weight, the best foods to eat are whole foods. One of the biggest advantages of eating whole, unprocessed foods is that you get the harmony of all of their nutrients together, the way nature intended. These critical nutrients keep your immune system strong and protect you from disease—single vitamins and minerals in supplement form are isolated and do not have the same beneficial effect.
In sharp contrast, eating processed foods exposes you to preservatives, dyes, and chemicals that have been linked to a higher incidence of ADHD, asthma, and immune imbalances. Processed food is also too high in salt, sugar, and trans fats.
When whole grains are refined, the bran and the coat of the grain are often removed. Dozens of nutrients are lost, though artificially adding a few back on actually emboldens manufacturers to call the product “enriched.”
With all of the extra fat and sugar in processed foods, calories add up quickly. The natural fiber in many vegetables, fruits, and grains fills you up without empty calories. Scientists estimate that eating 25 to 40 grams of fiber a day is ideal for optimal health. People who eat mainly processed foods get fewer than 10 grams of fiber a day. Cellulose, an insoluble fiber in plants, speeds up the elimination of waste, absorbs toxins, softens the stool, reduces hunger, and improves bowel disorders.
Another key to a healthy diet is variety. If you’re busy, you may be tempted to rely on convenience foods made mostly of white rice, pasta, and bread. The great news is that cooking healthy meals at home doesn’t have to be overly complicated or cost more! For instance, beans, whole grains, and produce are much cheaper than pre-packaged processed foods.
The recipes in Slimming Meals That Heal focus on vegetables—you need 10 servings of veggies a day for true sustained health. The average North American eats less than three. Including two to three servings of fruit will help to reduce your sweet cravings.
Fruits and vegetables also contain phytochemicals such as flavonoids and carotenoids. These natural compounds in plants work as antioxidants, which protect your cells against damage.
WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT?
This book is divided into three parts. Part I explores the scientific research that demonstrates the connection between obesity, inflammation, and emotional eating. We also look at how removing food allergies can lead to naturally balanced weight. By eating anti-inflammatory foods, you reduce the stress on the organs and glands responsible for making your hormones.
Part II outlines the five-step slimming plan that leads to effortless weight balance. It focuses on the anti-inflammatory food chart, clearly outlining the importance of avoiding processed meat and refined carbohydrates. These acid-forming foods create an inflammation response that leads to premature aging and disease. Fruits and vegetables are alkaline, which raises the pH of the body, reducing the incidence of inflammation. Many studies covered in SMTH have found that a diet rich in healthy foods like fruits and vegetables is associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, many types of cancer, and type 2 diabetes. The solution to easing inflammation and losing weight without dieting is to embrace wholesome, healing food.
Part III contains a menu plan that spotlights the top slimming superfoods in over 120 healing recipes. You’ll enjoy widely known superfoods (such as blueberries, cacao, hemp, and pomegranate) and less common ones as well (lacuma, mesquite, and maca). Meals That Heal Inflammation took much inspiration from East Asian and Indian cuisines. After you establish that you do not have a nightshade vegetable intolerance, you may enjoy the Mediterranean flavors in Slimming Meals That Heal. I’ve included tomatoes and red peppers as optional ingredients in this book’s recipes so that the recipes are both satisfying to the palate and naturally low in calories.
So let’s get started. As the ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus wrote, “There is advantage in the wisdom won from pain.” As you regain your full vitality, you will relish the understanding that your health is your wealth.