Healing Foods that Taste Great

SOME HEALING FOODS THAT TASTE GREAT

There is no denying that many health issues require medications or other medical interventions. But the foods you eat when you’re recovering from an illness, injury, or surgery can either support or hinder your recovery. Many foods have been shown to promote healing, reduce inflammation, boost your immune function, and provide the energy you need to snap back.

However, a lot of people believe that healing foods have a bland or unpalatable taste. But you do not have to choke down unpleasant-tasting foods before you can provide your body with the nutrients it needs to heal. Many healing foods taste great – sweet, spicy, and more. They sometimes even taste better than many common junk foods.

The following tasty foods can support your recovery by boosting your immunity and energy levels, promoting wound healing, among other things.

Berries

Berries are juicy and have a delicious flavor. They are also very rich in nutrients and phytochemicals – plant compounds – that help your body recover. Such nutrients include vitamin C, which stimulates collagen production for faster wound healing.

Berries are also rich in anthocyanins – plant compounds responsible for their color – that help support your immune function and ease inflammations. These anthocyanins can also help improve the memory of older adults.

Other healing nutrients found in berries include vitamins like folate and minerals like potassium and manganese. Some great berries include strawberries, blueberries, goji berries, acai berries, etc.

Nuts and Seeds

These foods provide your body with significant amounts of vitamins, minerals, plant-based proteins, and healthy fatty acids that it needs to heal. Some of these healing contents include zinc, magnesium, and vitamin E, among others.

Vitamin E has been shown to have an antioxidant effect that protects your body against cellular damage. It also helps supports your immune function. Some studies found that healthy vitamin E levels help improve the performance of your immune cells like the natural killer cells. This can help you to better fight infections and diseases.

The healthy fatty acids content has been shown to promote wound healing. They can also protect you against heart diseases and stroke.

Nuts and seeds can also help you relieve stress as they reduce your body’s response to stress. So, you can munch on a handful for a bit of pick-me-up.

These foods are tasty and usually require no preparation, so you can enjoy them raw. Examples of delicious and healing nuts and seeds include almonds, flaxseeds, and pistachios.

Sweet Potatoes

Insufficient carbohydrate intake can delay your healing. Fortunately, sweet potatoes are very rich in healthy carbohydrates that help boost your recovery. These carbohydrates not only provide your body cells with the energy they need to heal, but they also provide energy for wound repairing enzymes.

Sweet potatoes contain high amounts of antioxidants, like beta-carotene, that support your immunity and recovery. These antioxidants can also help you prevent some types of cancer.

In addition to the healthy carbohydrate and antioxidant content, sweet potatoes contain other compounds that encourage healing, including vitamins and minerals like B vitamins and manganese.

You do not have to worry about your weight or blood sugar levels with sweet potatoes because they have a low glycemic index.

No matter how you choose to consume them – boiled, baked, or fried – sweet potatoes have a fantastic taste that you can even enhance with sour cream or salted butter.

Eggs

Your body needs a lot more than the recommended daily amount of protein to recover after an illness, injury, or surgery. According to the American Society of Enhanced Recovery, you should consume 1.5-2 grams of protein per kilogram of your body weight after surgery instead of the usual 0.86 grams per kilogram. So, say you weigh 70 kg, you are looking at 105-140 grams of protein instead of the typical 60 grams.

Eggs are an excellent protein source that provides your body with highly absorbable protein. They also provide you with other nutrients like zinc, selenium, iron, vitamins A and B12 that boost your immune function, wound healing, and recovery.

Poultry

Poultry meats provide your body with specific amino acids that serve as building blocks for the proteins that your body needs for healthy immune function and wound healing. These amino acids include arginine and glutamine.

Glutamine protects your cells in stressful times like injury and illness. And arginine aids collagen production for better wound healing. But arginine is rapidly expended in times of stress. So, you must consume adequate amounts of this amino acid in foods like poultry.

Organ Meat

Organ meats are some of the most delicious foods. But beyond their taste, they are rich in immune-boosting nutrients like vitamin A, B vitamins, zinc, iron, and copper. These nutrients are also essential for connective tissue and collagen production - both are essential for wound healing and recovery from various illnesses.

In addition to supporting your immune health, the Vitamin A content also helps inhibit inflammation which can help ease your pain. It also plays a critical role in wound healing and maintaining your skin health.

Examples of organ meats include the liver, heart, and kidneys.

Oily Fishes

In addition to supporting brain and eye function, oily fishes like salmon are rich in omega-3 fatty acids that act as natural painkillers because of their anti-inflammatory properties.

These fishes are also rich in protein, iron, selenium, zinc, and B vitamins. Many studies have shown that these nutrients, along with the omega-3 fatty acids, can help enhance your immune response, promote wound healing, and reduce inflammation.

Mangoes

This tropical fruit is rich in soluble fiber, phytochemicals, and powerful antioxidants, including vitamins A and C. The high antioxidant content can help protect your body cells from oxidative damage and reduce your risk for many chronic diseases, including cancer.

In addition to their delicious taste, mangoes have low calories and glycemic index. So, they would not cause any significant spike in your blood sugar levels.

You can enjoy mangoes alone or add them to your smoothies, yogurt, and breakfast porridges.

Yogurt

This fermented dairy product is not just healthy; it is also very delicious. It contains high-quality proteins and fats, as well as beneficial vitamins and minerals like calcium.

Consuming yogurt can help improve your immunity, digestion, and bone health. It can also improve your cholesterol, blood pressure, and gut synthesis of healing vitamins – B and K.

It gets even better. Yogurt is very versatile as you can add almost anything to it – from seeds and nuts to fruits. However, you should stay away from yogurt with high amounts of added sugars.

Watermelon

Watermelon is rich in nutrients and phytochemicals that have powerful healing properties.  This fruit can help reduce blood pressure, improve your insulin sensitivity, and reduce muscle soreness after workouts.

Watermelon also has low calories and a low glycemic index that help prevent significant spikes in your blood sugar levels.

They make refreshing snacks on hot summer days because of their high water content.

Ginger

Ginger contains a high amount of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds. These compounds make it popular for many healing benefits, including boosting your immunity, reducing inflammation, and relieving pain. It can also improve your cardiovascular function and digestion.

Ginger is also famous for its ability to treat all types of nausea. So it can serve as a great alternative to tablets in managing the motion sickness.

You only need a small amount of ginger to enjoy its incredible flavor and healing benefits.

Garlic

Garlic contains nutrients that can help you prevent colds, heart disease, and even lung cancer. It also has a tremendous antibiotic effect. In fact, a study conducted at the University of East London found garlic to be effective against the most antibiotic-resistant strains of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA).

If you can get past the garlic breath, this food has a mind-blowing flavor, no matter how you choose to eat it – raw, roasted, etc.

Cruciferous Vegetables

These vegetables have exceptional health benefits and can help promote healing and recovery because they contain various antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.

Cruciferous vegetables are rich in glucosinolates, which your body converts into isothiocyanates. Isothiocyanates have been shown to help boost your immunity by inducing the death of infected cells, suppressing inflammation, and activating your immune defenses.

These vegetables also contain many other nutrients like vitamin C and B vitamins that your body needs during recovery.

Examples of nice-tasting cruciferous vegetables include broccoli, Brussels sprouts (when cooked properly), and cauliflower.

Bananas

Bananas are well known for their antacid properties. Hence, they can help soothe painful heartburns and even protect you against stomach ulcers. So, if you suffer from heartburns or indigestion, you might benefit significantly from including this tasty fruit in your diet.

Bananas can also help reduce your risk of stroke and hypertension.

Cheese

A lot of people consider cheese to be one of the most delicious foods. But in addition to its great taste, cheese can do amazing things for your healing process and overall health. This is because of its rich vitamin and mineral content. Some of its healing content includes zinc, selenium, calcium, and vitamin B12.

Honey

Honey is a great immune-booster that is rich in antioxidants and has antibacterial and antiviral properties. It can help treat many health conditions, including digestive problems, ulcers, flu, sore throat, and acne.

Shellfish

Shellfish like clams and oysters are rich in many healing nutrients like zinc. Zinc plays a vital role in healthy immune function. It also speeds up recovery and wound healing.

SUMMARY

Contrary to popular belief, you do not have to endure unpalatable tastes to enjoy the healing properties of food. Many healing foods taste amazing, sometimes even better than common junk foods.

But you should note that even though healing foods can boost your health and support your recovery, they are not the only things your body needs to heal. You should endeavor to get enough sleep, hydrate optimally, and steer clear of alcohol and smoking.

Finally, you can snack on any of the above foods whenever you crave something tasty. Not only are they very delicious, but they can also boost your recovery and overall health.

[ The following is the full transcript from this week's post. This is a health blog with a focus on weight loss. Please consider that all episodes are unscripted, direct to the camera, with focused talking points. ]

Hello.

So today, I want to talk to you about specific foods and related to how there are some foods that actually help in the healing process and the good thing is they are foods that taste great also.

It is undeniable that we are going to have health issues.

Often, we may have to take medication or have some type of medical intervention to kind of get through different things in our lives.

What is important to understand that there are many foods that we can eat, that actually will aid in our recovery, from either an illness or injury or post-surgery, these can really help us to get better, faster. And then obviously long term they can help reduce the need for these types of things.

There are many foods that have been shown to promote healing, they reduce inflammation, Help boost your immune function, and really help provide energy. So, you can snap back quickly.

Now, one of the challenges that people often believe that healing foods are going to be bland and just does not taste well. That is really not the case.

There are many healing foods. That taste great, they can be sweet or spicy. And it is really important for you to understand kind of what these foods are. In fact, often people often find, some of these foods actually taste much better than even common junk food.

We want to do a deeper dive into what these foods are that are going to help support your recovery. They certainly help boost your immunity, energy levels, and really promote healthy healing.

The first category is berries. Berries can be juicy. And they have a delicious flavor. Berries are very rich in nutrients and phytochemicals. These phytochemicals can really help your body recover. Nutrients that are included in various or vitamin C, which is essential to help stimulate collagen production promote faster-wound healing.

Berries are also rich in other chemicals that helped support your immune system. They help ease inflammation as I have talked many, many times about the importance of combating inflammation while berries can really help do that. And in fact, barriers have also been shown to help improve memory in older adults.

Other things like vitamins, minerals like potassium and magnesium are found in berries.

So, you know, enjoy some berries. I would encourage, people to have berries on a daily basis but specifically, when you are under the weather, they enjoy some berries such as strawberries, blueberries, et cetera.

The next healthy food is nuts and seeds.

I think often we kind of undervalue nuts and seeds. Nuts and seeds provide us with a significant number of vitamins, Minerals, and actually a protein, so good sources of protein. One of the real health benefits of nuts is a healthy fat. We've all often been taught that fat is bad, and that is not true.

There are certain fats that are bad. But there are certain facts that are healthy, too. You find a healthy fatty acid in nuts and seeds, and these fatty acids really help promote healing. So other things found in nuts and seeds are zinc, magnesium, and vitamin E, all of which help the healing process and help keep us healthy.

So Vitamin E specifically is shown to have an antioxidant effect. It also supports your immune function. So, it is very important that we have adequate vitamins and nuts, and seeds are a good source of that.

Some studies have found that healthy vitamin D levels help improve the performance of your brain cells, Like the natural killer cells and this, can really help, your body fight better against infection and disease.

The fatty acids found in nuts and seeds also seem to help promote wound healing. And again, they also can help protect you against heart disease or stroke.

Another interesting thing, nuts can help kind of relieve you of stress, and how they do that is because they reduce your body's response to stress.

So, you know, the handful of nuts is really going to be beneficial for your health.

The nice thing about nuts, they taste good to start with, they usually do not cut require really any preparation. You can enjoy them raw.

Some nuts you can enjoy are almonds, flax seeds, and pistachios. Really incorporate nuts seeds into your daily routine. But specifically, when you are under the weather, they can really help promote your recovery.

The next item is sweet potatoes. One of the challenges is when you are sick or healing, we may have insufficient carbohydrates and it is really important that we have adequate carbohydrate to promote healing.

Well, the good thing about sweet potatoes is that is very rich in healthy carbohydrates. This helps really boost your recovery. These carbohydrates not only provide cells the energy they need to heal but also provide energy for wound repairing enzymes.

So, the cells themselves and also enzymes taking part in healing benefit from sweet potatoes. Again, sweet potatoes, contain high amounts of antioxidants, specifically beta carotene, and they support your immunity and recovery. These antioxidants actually can help prevent some types of cancer in addition to that.

In addition to the healthy carbohydrates and antioxidants, sweet potatoes contain other compounds that encourage healing like vitamins and minerals like vitamin B and magnesium. And the nice thing about the sweet potato is it has a low impact on your blood sugar levels, meaning that has a low glycemic index.

There are different methods to enjoy sweet potatoes, but the good thing is I see them just plain old sweet potatoes, boil them baked, it is quite tasty and does not require a lot of other additional things to make it palatable.

Enjoy a sweet potato from time to time.

The next item is Eggs.

Your body really needs a lot more than the recommended daily amount of protein to recover after an illness or injury or surgery. According to the American Society of Enhanced Recovery, you should consume 1.5 to 2 grams of protein per kilogram of your body weight after surgery.

And that is instead of the usual zero-point eighty-six grams per kilogram. For example, if you 70 kilograms, you are looking at 105 to 140 grams of protein instead of a typical 60 grams.

Well, eggs are an excellent source of protein. And they provide your body with highly absorbable protein, in addition to the protein, they provide you with other nutrients like zinc, selenium, iron, vitamin A, B 12. And these helped boost your immune function and promote wound healing and recovery.

The next item is poultry. Poultry meat provides you with very specific amino acids, to kind of serve as a building block for the protein that your body needs for healthy immune function.

Specifically, these amino acids include arginine and glutamine. Glutamine protects your cells in stressful times like injury and illness. And arginine really aids and collagen and production for better healing. Both these amino acids are very beneficial, in healing and promoting their health.

Now one of the things is the amino acid arginine is rapidly depleted in times of stress, and your body, really needs more arginine. This is something you can find in poultry to help maintain sufficient amounts of these amino acids.

Another food item that has been found to be helpful in healing is organ meats.

And the thing about organ meats as they are there rich in immune-boosting nutrients, like vitamin A, B vitamins, zinc, iron, and copper. But these nutrients are also essential for connective tissue and collagen production. So, both are essential for wound healing and recovery from various illnesses. The antioxidants but also the building blocks of wound recovery are provided in various organs.

Now, in addition to supporting your immune health, Vitamin A content also helps inhibit inflammation, which can actually help ease your pain and this also plays a critical role in healing and maintaining actually good and healthy skin. Examples of organ meats, liver, heart, and kidneys. There is some value in these types of things and supporting here your health and wellness specifically and time's of illness or injury.

The next item is oily fishes.

In addition to supporting brain and eye function, oily fish like salmon are rich in omega-three fatty acids. This acts as a natural painkiller because again of their anti-inflammatory properties. These fish are rich in protein, iron, selenium, zinc, and B vitamins. And, many studies have shown that these nutrients, along with the Omega three fatty acids, can really help enhance your immune response. They promote wound healing, and they reduce inflammation.

As I have said, over and over again, inflammation, chronic inflammation is really detrimental or health. So anything that helps combat that is very beneficial to our health long term.

The next item is mangoes, this is a tropical fruit, and it is rich in soluble fiber. It also has its phytochemicals, powerful antioxidants and includes Vitamin A and C, These high antioxidant content really helps protect your body from cellular damage from oxidative stress and it really can help reduce the risk of many chronic diseases, including some cancers.

In addition to their delicious taste mangoes have very low-calorie content and a glycemic index, so they are not going to cause a significant spike in your blood sugars. Which is nice. Another nice thing about mangoes, you can enjoy them just alone or prepare with other things like a smoothie, so, get out there and try some mangoes and it is going to help promote your health.

The next item is yogurt.

Yogurt is something that is consumed by quite a bit of people. But how does it help you in your health and wellness specifically in injuries and illness?

Well, yogurt does contain high-quality proteins and fats and obviously also has many beneficial vitamins and minerals like calcium. So, yogurt can help improve your immunity, digestive system, and bone health, but also improves your cholesterol blood pressure. And, gut synthesis of healing vitamins like B and K.

Now, the nice thing is, like, with yogurt, is it is very versatile. So, you really know almost anything from seeds to nuts to fruit. That really can be something you can really enjoy.

Now, a word of caution here is you really should avoid yogurts, that are high in added sugar. You need to read the label and make sure that you are eating healthy yogurt versus the yogurt that has a lot of sugar added to it. We want to stay away from that.

The next food item is watermelon.

So, watermelon is rich in nutrients and phytochemicals, and it has powerful healing properties. This fruit can help reduce your blood pressure, improves your insulin sensitivity, and really can actually reduce muscle soreness after a workout.

Again, watermelon also has a low number of calories and a low glycemic index. That really helps prevent significant spikes in your blood sugar. The nice thing about watermelon is it is really a refreshing snack, specifically on a hot summer day because of their very high water content, so do not be afraid to enjoy your watermelon.

The next item is ginger.

Ginger actually contains a high amount of Acid oxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds. These compounds make for many benefits and include boosting your immunity, reducing inflammation, and relieve pain. It also can help improve your cardiovascular function and digestion.

Ginger is actually famous; we have known for its ability to treat all types of nausea. We can serve as a great kind of alternative to prescription medication and helping manage if you are having something that is causing you to be nauseated.

A nice thing is, you only need a small amount of Ginger to really have enjoyed it is incredible, effects and healing and really, it is very flavorful and something that is easy to enjoy.

The next item is garlic.

It is well known that garlic can help kind of prevent colds. It does help heart disease and even lung cancer. It really has a tremendous antibiotic effect. In fact, there was a study at the University of East London that found that garlic is to be as effective against the most common antibiotic-resistant strains of what is called methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus or MRSA.

And they found that Garlic was extremely beneficial, specifically to build those kinds of bacteria that are very antibiotic resistant.

One of the challenges you know with garlic is the garlic breath. The nice thing is it does offer quite a bit of flavor. You can eat it raw or roasted. There are multiple ways to enjoy garlic.

The next food item that promotes health inhaling, is cruciferous vegetables.

These really can help promote healing and recovery, because they really contain a variety of oxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Some of these compounds really can help to boost your immunity. They actually can help to induce the death of certain cells that have been infected. Also, it can suppress inflammation.

It is very helpful at basically activating your immune defenses, so another good item to enjoy, specifically if you are trying to get over some illness or injury. They contain nutrients like vitamin C B, and these are all things needed during recovery.

Some examples over here, cruciferous vegetables are broccoli, Brussels sprouts cauliflower and these can be prepared in a variety of ways.

The next item is bananas.

Bananas are well known for their anti-acid properties. Hence, they can really see painful heartburn, they can actually protect you against stomach ulcers. So, if you are someone who suffers from heartburn or indigestion, you might benefit from including bananas in your diet. Bananas are also shown to reduce your risk of stroke and hypertension.

But cheese, a lot of people consider a change to be extremely delicious. But in addition to the great taste, cheese can really help promote healing and overall good health. This is because cheese is rich in vitamins and minerals, some of the healing content includes zinc, selenium, calcium, and vitamin B, 12, salt.

Cheese can really help promote healing.

The next item is honey.

Honey is a great immune booster. It is rich in antioxidants and that really has strong anti-bacterial, antiviral properties. It can help treat many health conditions, including digestive problems, ulcers, flu, sore throat, acne.

So, honey really has some helpful benefits when it comes to recovery from or illness.

The next item is shellfish.

Shellfish, like clams and oysters, are rich in many healing nutrients like zinc. Zinc plays a vital role in healthy immune function. Zinc also helps speed up recovery and wound healing.

These are just some food items to consider, specifically that are helpful. And the nice thing about these items is they actually taste good. Often people think if it is going to help them be healthy then that also equates to not tasting good or really be palatable.

And that is just not the case, there are many healing foods, that taste amazing. Like I said at the beginning, some of these are preferred over common chunks.

It is important that you know the different things you can do to help improve your healing and these are just some things that can really support your health during the recovery period. Because your body needs so many things to heal, and these foods help provide those things.

You really should strive to eat healthy all the time, but specifically, there are certain food items when you are ill or injured that can actually help promote health.

Now, it is also important to remember it is not just a matter of eating. You should really strive to get enough sleep; you maintain adequate hydration. Try to steer clear of alcohol and smoking.

These are items that you can enjoy all the time they are tasty. And the nice thing is, you can enjoy their flavor, but they also can help really boost your recovery and overall health.

As you are going along on your journey, it is your health and wellness.

Remember, what you are eating is really having an impact on your body's function.  And specifically, are there things you can eat when you are feeling a little under, which there is.

I hope this is helpful, remember it is your health and wellness journey, it is up to you.

But remember.

You have got this.

Thanks.