Dr. Weil's diet: the anti-inflammatory diet

The origins of the anti-inflammatory diet

Several authors have proposed diets with anti-inflammatory potential, including Dr. Andrew Weil, who is certainly one of the largest sponsors of this diet, as well as Dr. David Servan-Schreiber and, more recently, Dr. Serfaty-Lacrosnière. They, like many other researchers and health professionals, believe that too much inflammation is a common cause of many diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and some cancers.

The main principles of the anti-inflammatory diet

The anti-inflammatory diet aims to reduce inflammation in the body that results in different symptoms. The objectives of this regime can be considered as follows:

Protect the immune system.
Help the body to resist and adapt to change.
Reduce the risk of diseases with an inflammatory component (cardiovascular diseases, asthma, Alzheimer’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome, cancer, autoimmune diseases, etc.).
Increase healthy life expectancy.

Authorized foods

This diet is very similar to the Mediterranean diet, it consists in consuming as much food as possible from the plant kingdom, fatty fish and not eating processed foods.

Some authors also recommend reducing the consumption of allergenic foods such as eggs, wheat, peanuts, corn, soybeans and dairy products.

How Dr. Weil’s diet helps you reduce chronic inflammation

The antioxidants contained in fruits and vegetables will help to slow down cell aging and promote good general health. In parallel, the omega 3 provided by oleaginous fruits and fatty fish will prevent cardiovascular diseases, especially with the decrease in the consumption of red meat.

Homemade dishes will have the advantage of containing less salt, fat and hidden sugars than commercial processed products and will also help reduce inflammatory markers.

Typical one-day menu with the anti-inflammatory diet

Breakfast	Cereal breadScrambled tofu with turmericOrange
Lunch	Lentil salad with tomatoes and mushroomsDark chocolate squareGreen tea
Snack	Roasted soybeans
Lunch	Salmon steakRice completeAsparagus1glass of red wine

The advantages and disadvantages of the anti-inflammatory diet

Advantages

Satisfying

No problem of satiety with this diet composed of complete foods, the present fibres and proteins of good nutritional quality allow you to be well satisfied.

Prevention of cardiovascular diseases

With the consumption of good fats, more precisely omega 3 and the reduction of saturated fatty acids in red meat, this diet makes it easier to prevent cardiovascular disease.

Food balance respected

This diet is in line with most international nutritional recommendations, increasing fibre intake through the consumption of fruits and vegetables and whole grains while reducing red meat and processed products.