Anti-inflammatory Foods and Respiratory Health

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A while back I wrote a blog post about inflammation and how to control it naturally with foods and supplements. In the post I touched on the subject of respiratory health and inflammation. Instead of rehashing all of that again for this series on how to stay healthy during cold and flu season, I am providing the link to the earlier post here.

I mainly utilize the contents of my spice cabinet throughout the year to keep my family’s respiratory health in tip top shape. As I mentioned in the earlier post cinnamon, ginger, black pepper, cayenne pepper, turmeric, cumin and cloves are incredible for reducing inflammation in your breathing pathways. I add the spices to the foods and beverages that we consume the most to make sure we have them daily.

Now that I think of it, I wrote another post quite a while ago about the awesomeness of cinnamon and how I use it. The link to that post is here.

So far in this series we’ve covered how a healthy gut leads to a strong immune system, increasing our antioxidant intake and using anti-inflammatory foods to boost you respiratory health.

The last installment will contain recipes I use daily or seasonally to keep my family going strong. Stay tuned!

Haaaaave you met my friend cinnamon?

Yup, cinnamon is one of my best friends, especially in the fall. Of course I love the flavor, but it’s what cinnamon does for me that keeps me coming back for more. Cinnamon regulates blood sugar, reduces LDL cholesterol levels, reduces arthritis pain, it’s an antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. It’s not just a latte topper anymore.

Because of all of it’s lovely healthful qualities, I take it daily as well as give it to my children when cold and flu season comes around. A little sprinkle here, a pinch there and we are good to go. It’s wonderful for avoiding getting sick when everyone else around you is hacking up a lung and sneezing all over you. It is also fantastic if you have managed to catch what’s going around, to shorten the span of the sickness.

Like I said a little goes a long way with cinnamon. No need to over do it. It’s wonderful in plain yogurt, since it adds a natural sweetness. I put it in my coffee and my kid’s oatmeal or grits in the morning. But I wouldn’t have more than a teaspoon a day. There’s really no need.

So, if you like the flavor as much as I do, give it a try. Here’s another tasty way that I’ve been adding cinnamon to my diet:

 

My fall maintenance drink.
My fall maintenance drink.

 

Don't even get me started on how awesome turmeric is.
Don’t even get me started on how awesome turmeric is.

 

So, one day I was getting sick of drinking plain water and was also getting a little scratchiness in the throat. I decided to add some lime juice to get some vitamin C in me. Then I thought, why not add a little cinnamon (2 shakes) to take the sour edge off? Then I was like, well I’m right here in the spice cabinet, why not throw in some turmeric (again, 2 shakes) and shut this cold down before it starts?! It totally worked and tasted great doing so. Now I try to have one of these a day. So far I’m feeling terrific and getting my autumn spice fix!