Seasonings and Good Fats

After you follow a strict diet and eat the foods we talked about in part 5 for a few months the inflammation in your body should have improved and seasonings can be introduced gradually, one at a time. And by now you should be enjoying the natural taste of vegetables, fresh fruits, and other whole foods. This is also a huge bonus of the elimination diet, to increase the taste bud sensitivity and decrease the amount of not so healthy seasonings like salt.

Let’s talk about Beneficial Fats and Their Role in our Diet

Omega-3 fatty acids are anti-inflammatory for inflammation-based autoimmune diseases.

These fats are found for example in chia, hemp, and flax seeds and dark leafy greens.

This dark leafy greens should be consumed daily and one to two tablespoons of seeds can be introduced in the later phases of the diet.

A small handful of walnuts, either as whole nuts or mixed as dressings and sauces can also be used as a source of Omega-3. Also, DHA/EPA supplements derived from algae, not fish oil that’s probably contaminated with heavy metals like mercury, are a good source at the beginning of our elimination diet when seeds and nuts are most problematic for our gut.

Gamma (GLA) and Alpha Linolenic Acid (ALA) black currant seed is anOmega-6 fatty acid from which the body makes a potent, natural anti-inflammatory substance called prostaglandin E-1. This substance complements the Omega-3 and can be very beneficial for our inflammatory autoimmune disease. ALA and GLA can be taken as pills or natural from black currant seed oil.