How to fight colds, heartburn, joint pain,
allergies, and other ailments by choosing the right food.
Superfoods that heal
Once upon
a time, food as medicine wasn't such a strange idea—Hippocrates himself vouched
for it. And while you may not expect your meals to hold as much importance in
an era when doctors can do face transplants, food is still vital for mental and
physical well-being. "Our bodies have a remarkable capacity to heal, and
what we eat can help with that," says Travis Stork, MD, co-host of The Doctorsand a practicing board-certified
emergency-medicine physician. The thought that diet enhances mood and wellness may be
age-old, but the scientific proof is brand-new. So turn your grocery list into
an Rx for what ails you, using this latest research as your guide.Curb heartburn: Whole grains and fiber
'Tis the season for
overindulging—and heartburn. But adding in more veggies and replacing refined
grains like white rice and pasta with their whole-wheat counterparts might help
you survive the holidays reflux-free. The secret? The high insoluble-fiber
content gets things moving, explains Ronald Primas, MD, clinical instructor of
medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital, in New York City: "The more fiber you eat, the less time food spends in
the stomach, which helps keep food and acid from coming back up."
Survive
cold season: Tuna, halibut, turkey
Don't
subsist only on salads during the winter months. Getting an insufficient amount
of selenium can mean that you're missing out on a key player in immune
function. Selenium helps build up white blood cells—particularly those
responsible for killing bacteria and viruses, even the flu. Animal studies have shown that selenium
deficiency not only leads to more severe flu symptoms but also enables mild flu
viruses to mutate into more virulent strains. Just one serving of halibut or
sardines gives you more than 60 percent of your RDA and provides you with
mood-boosting omega-3 fatty acids.
What do yogurt, kimchi (Korean
cabbage), kefir (a fermented milk drink), miso and tempeh (made from fermented
soybeans) have in common? They all contain beneficial bacteria, aka probiotics, which can help keep your immune
system strong, explains Siona Sammartino, a nutritionist and natural foods chef
in Seattle, WA. A Swedish study found that having a daily probiotic drink cut workplace sick days by 55 percent. And a Cochrane
meta-analysis of 10 studies found that probiotics worked better than placebos
for reducing upper respiratory infections. Not into yogurt? Say cheese: Many aged
raw-milk cheeses (such as Edam, Gouda or feta) are good sources of probiotics,
notes Sammartino.
Vitamin A is the VIP here, keeping
mucous membranes moist and healthy so germs can't get past them, says David
Katz, MD, founder of the Yale University Prevention Research Center and author
ofDisease-Proof: The Remarkable Truth About What Makes Us Well.
Soothe
joint and muscle pain: Fatty fish
It's like oil in the Tin Man's
joints: The omega-3 fatty acids in fish such as salmon and sardines can help get stiff knees
working again. A recent meta-analysis of research found that taking omega-3s
daily reduced joint pain and a.m. stiffness enough to allow patients with
rheumatoid arthritis to reduce NSAID use.
Athletes swear by the
anti-inflammatory powers of tangy "sour-pie" cherry juice to reduce
after-workout soreness. In a study from Oregon Health & Science University,
runners who drank 12 ounces of the tart stuff twice daily for a week before a
race (plus on the day of the event) reported less post-run pain than those who
had a cherry-flavored placebo drink.
Clear allergy fog: Nuts and seeds
Got itchy eyes and sneezing fits?
Make like a squirrel and stock up on nuts and seeds. Almonds, peanuts and
sunflower seeds (and even some vegetables) are chock-full of vitamin E, which
studies suggest may help reduce the allergic response, explains Today show
nutrition expert Joy Bauer, RD. A German study found that
people with diets high in vitamin E had a lower risk of hay fever than
those who weren't getting as much of it. The RDA for adults is 15mg, the amount
in about 2 ounces of sunflower seeds—perfect for powering up a salad.
Lab research suggests why you should
eat the parsley-sprig garnish on your plate (and then some): It's been shown to
be an antibacterial force against the germs that cause urinary tract
infections—even some of those that have demonstrated resistance to antibiotics.
Next time you feel the dreaded twinge of a UTI, try this: Boil some water,
steep a bunch of parsley in it for 10 minutes and then drink up, recommends
Param Dedhia, MD, internal-medicine physician at Canyon Ranch Resort and Spa,
in Tucson, Ariz. Repeat throughout the day.
Fight a UTI: Cranberry juice
It's not merely a sweet mixer for
boozy beverages. Studies show that the go-to preventive remedy for UTIs isn't
just the stuff of folklore. Past research has focused on compounds in
cranberries (and blueberries) called proanthocyanidins, which were found to
keep bacteria from attaching to bladder cells and causing infection. Now new
research from McGill University demonstrates yet another way that the humble cranberry
may be a woman's best friend: "In lab studies, cranberry prevented the
bacteria from producing a specific protein called flagellin, which is necessary
for growing the tails that enable them to swim up the urinary tract and attach
to cells," explains lead study author Nathalie Tufenkji, PhD. Look for
products with cranberry juice listed in the first three ingredients.
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