Nutrition Superfoods for a Healthier New Year
At the beginning of a new year, we all have high hopes for good things- healthy relationships, healthy finances, and most of all a healthy body.
Nutrition plays a huge role in the health of your body, whether you have CF or not. But with CF, there are many challenges to staying healthy, so eating nutritious food becomes even more important.
I always remember when my daughter was diagnosed- I was told to feed her as much junk food, candy, milk and cream as she would eat. I was not working in the nutrition field at the time, but that sounded awfully unhealthy to me. I don’t think having a disease is a license to eat unlimited junk. It certainly doesn’t help, and can end up having a negative effect on your health.
“You are what you eat.” Your food is the fuel for your body to run better and perform all of its functions efficiently. If you put milk in your car’s gas tank, the car wouldn’t run very well and you might actually cause some damage. It’s the same with your body. If your “fuel” consists of packaged, heavily processed foods, sugar and saturated fat, your body is not going to run well, and damage to your health can be a result.
That being said, this month I want to talk about the foods that will have the greatest impact on your health. I believe in adding in better food choices rather than restricting foods. When I ask my clients to add in certain foods, what inevitably happens is that these nutritious new foods “crowd out” the less healthy foods so that over time, you will naturally take in less of the junk.
For you, my CF Superstar, the superstar food that will have the greatest impact on your health is leafy greens. Now, before you click off this page saying "I don’t like vegetables,” hear me out.
It’s not about chewing on grass and leaves like a horse out in the field (although they seem pretty happy). It’s about discovering ways to include greens that are delicious to you.
Before I get to that, let me tell you why greens are so powerful and so important for you if you have CF.
Benefits of Leafy Greens
Greens help improve your body’s inflammatory response. When you have CF or any disease, inflammation is at play. Any steps you can take to control it will be beneficial. My daughter can sort of sense when she feels inflamed (she goes by how her sinuses feel). Greens like spinach and kale are high in Vitamin D which supports your T cells that help you fight off invaders. Supporting a healthy inflammatory response and immunity are key to staying well with CF.
Greens also support a healthy gut because they contain compounds that prevent infection and inflammation. While they are protecting your gut, they are also feeding the good bacteria in your gut due to their high fiber content.
Greens act as natural detoxifiers. Their green pigment comes from chlorophyll which helps them bind to toxins and escort them out of the body. Greens also help cleanse your liver and keep toxins from accumulating in your body.
Greens contain potassium, a mineral and electrolyte which helps to maintain a balance of fluid in your body and improve hydration.
Finally, greens help support healthy bones because of their calcium and Vitamin K content.
There are so many more benefits of including green leafies in your diet, from improving stress, to reducing signs of aging and making your skin glow, but today I’m focusing on the CF benefits.
Next time, I’ll show you how to include more greens in your routine and give you some recipes to get you started.