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Pictured recipe:Quinoa Avocado Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
There’s lots to love about fiber-rich foods. Because you digest fiber slowly, it can help you stay fuller longer—that’s part of the reason it’sa key nutrient for weight loss. Plus,fiber has benefitsfor your gut, heart, digestion and type 2 diabetes risk. If that weren’t enough to make you reach fora bowl of oatmeal, new research from Columbia University found that eating fiber from whole grains could also help decrease inflammation.
The #1 Snack to Eat to Help Decrease Inflammation, According to a Dietitian
The study,published inJAMA Network Open, used data from theCardiovascular Health Study, which surveyed more than 4,000 adults from 1989 to 2015. Participants logged their eating habits and had follow-up visits to assess their heart health through June 2015. The researchers used blood samples to assess inflammation.
“Higher intakes of dietary fiber is associated with lower CVD [cardiovascular disease] risk,” study author Rupak Shivakoti, Ph.D., said ina media release. “A common hypothesis has been that higher fiber intakes reduce inflammation, subsequently leading to lower CVD risk. With findings from this study, we are now learning that one particular type of dietary fiber—cereal fiber—but not fruit or vegetable fiber was associated with lower inflammation.”
While the study doesn’t go into depth regarding which cereal-fiber-rich foods the participants ate most, you’ll find cereal fiber in delicious whole grains (and products made with whole grains), like brown rice, bran, whole-wheat bread, whole-wheat pasta, oatmeal and popcorn. That means adding more of this beneficial fiber to your routine could be as simple as swapping in whole-wheat pasta for dinner or starting your day with a quick bowl of oatmeal.
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If you want to reduce the inflammation in your body, eating more fiber is just one of the many things you can switch up in your routine. Eating more nutrient-denseveggies like avocado, beets and kaleis a tasty way to fight inflammation. Colorful veggies, like these three examples, deliver inflammation-fighting antioxidants. And the more color and variety you include on your plate, the wider range of antioxidants you’ll get. (TheseVegan Superfood Grain Bowlscombine all three of those nutrient-packed ingredients, plus fiber- and protein-rich quinoa, to create a delicious anti-inflammatory lunch.) And, generally, eating more plant-based foodscan help tame inflammation, as plant-based foods contain little, if any, saturated fat—a nutrient mainly found in animal products that can do harm to our heart and overall body when we eat too much.
That’s why sticking to an eating pattern like the Mediterranean diet, which balances whole grains, healthy fats, fruits, veggies and lean and plant-based proteins, can be a great choice.Research has foundthat following a Mediterranean-diet eating plan could help reduce chronic pain and inflammation. To test-drive it for yourself, look to ourAnti-Inflammatory Mediterranean Diet Planfor some inspiration, from breakfast to dinner with snacks in between.
Bottom Line
While more research needs to be done to confirm the findings, a recent study found that fiber from whole grains could decrease the level of inflammation in your body. That’s a win forfolks with arthritisand everyone else aiming to eat for a healthy gut and less chronic inflammation. A high-fiber recipe like ourQuinoa Avocado Salad with Buttermilk Dressingis a healthy, delicious way to add some whole grains to your routine.
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