Top 10 Anti-inflammatory Choices You Should Start Making Today!

Functional Foods: Fermented Foods

As a holistic physician I am all about functional foods. A functional food is a food that has added benefits to your body’s function including disease prevention and health promotion. Functional foods are a great way to boost your health and wellness naturally. Most people think foods fortified with nutrients are included in this definition, but I don’t agree. Sure milk these days is fortified with vitamins… but that doesn’t make those nutrients absorbable in your body for use. Too many foods like cereals and grains are fortified with vitamins as well…which begs the question “What did processing raw living ingredients strip out of the plant?”.

Fermented foods are an amazing addition to your diet for multiple reasons.

1- It’s a functional food that adds it’s own natural probiotics and enzymes to your body! Probiotics are the good bacteria that live in your gut. There are supposed to be around 10 TRILLION good bacteria in your gut.. and guess what… there is only 1 trillion cells of YOU in your own body. Adding good bacteria to your body promotes proper digestion of other foods. Your good bacteria make up roughly 70%  of your immune system and they produce your serotonin (makes you feel happy).

2-Fermenting makes it easier to digest! You know mamma bird chew, partially digest foods and feed them to their young? Think of fermentation as a way less gross form of that. Fermented foods are partially digested making them much easier to digest and utilize in your own body. When your digestive system has to put less energy and effort into the digestive process, it can use more energy toward utilizing those nutrients for your body’s health! It’s like adding premium fuel into a gas tank, the best of the best.

3-Fermenting changes the structures of foods, make them Good for you! Case in point: Soy. Unless it’s in it’s fermented state, soy is inflammatory, one of the top 8 food allergens, and acts as an extra estrogen in our bodies much like plastic. Miso and Tempeh are the fermented forms of soy that are actually great for you. Fermenting changes the molecular structure of the soy making it easy to digest and utilize. Fermented soy is eaten in many other countries on a regular basis, which is where all the “Soy is good for you” thinking stems from. Even some people who have gluten intolerance can tolerate Sour Dough bread, because it is a fermented food. Now it’s still a bread product, but it’s much easier on your system if you are going to partake.

Fermented Foods to add to your diet:

1. Kombucha
A fizzy, fermented black tea that’s no stranger to New Yorkers, kombucha gives you a bang for your bacterial buck because of the variety of microorganisms it contains. When you drink a bottle of kombucha, you’re drinking four to seven microorganisms all at once, building a really strong gut.

2. Sauerkraut
Turns out you should put sauerkraut, AKA fermented cabbage, on way more than your tofu dogs. It has a powerful impact on brain health, including depression and anxiety. There’s a tremendous connection between gut and brain health.

3. Pickles
Pickles are the gateway ferment. Not only do they provide a healthy dose of probiotics, they’re a familiar food item and have a taste that many people already love—including those who may hold their nose at the idea of eating fermented foods.

4. Coconut Yogurt
Kimberley Snyder, celebrity nutritionist and author of The Beauty Detox Foods, loves coconut yogurt, because it’s a delicious, dairy-free way to work plenty of enzymes and probiotics into your diet. Though Greek and regular yogurt are also fermented foods, Snyder is less enthusiastic about them. “Dairy is extremely acid-forming in the body and difficult to digest,” she explains.

5. Miso
Jeff Cox, author of The Essential Book of Fermentation, loves miso for its nutritional profile. The paste made from fermented soybeans and grains is “full of essential minerals, like potassium, and consists of millions of microorganisms giving us strength and stamina,” he says. To make miso soup, just add a dollop to boiling water, along with some favorite vegetables, like onions, bok choy, or mushrooms.

6. Tempeh
Tempeh (fermented soybeans) is a complete protein with all of the amino acids, says Cox. He suggests using it as a yummy substitute for bacon in BLTs. Try flavoring organic tempeh with some tamari (also fermented), then add it to a sandwich with tomato, lettuce, and toast. Or eat it tossed in a bowl of steamed veggies.

7. Kimchi
Think of this spicy Korean dish—typically made from fermented cabbage—as a beauty food, as well as an energy-booster, says Snyder. It can help “enhance digestion and nutrient assimilation,” she explains. “You may also notice, with improved digestion, an improvement in the look of your skin.”

Resources:

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/fermented-foods-health/#axzz2uYFAnfko

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2004/01/03/fermented-foods-part-two.aspx

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/amazing-healing-properties-fermented-foods?page=1

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/07/14/gut-microbes-for-healthy-immune-system.aspx