Eat Some Blueberries And Chocolate…
I was on a podcast the other day, and one of the hosts asked if he could have some chocolate and blueberries after tough training to reduce inflammation and help with injuries. I chuckled, explaining that it wasn’t that simple. After the podcast, I did a further dive. I talk a lot about inflammation because it rears its head in so many illnesses and injuries. Sometimes inflammation is good for healing. But many times it becomes chronic or unhelpful.
A Magic Pill
In the jiu jitsu circle, I’ve heard ibuprofen referred to as “Vitamin I”. Anti-inflammatory medications, like ibuprofen, have their place, but this should not be in your daily nutrition stack. After all, these drugs carry their own risks, especially when used long-term. For example, they can cause gut and kidney issues over time.
Anti-Inflammatory Diet
There are so many foods we can eat (and others we can avoid) to keep inflammation down. Here is a quick list I pulled from my functional medicine doctor, Will Cole. The evidence is stronger for some over others, but they are all clean, reasonable whole foods.
Blueberries and other berries
Avocados
Extra virgin olive oil
Coconut oil
Eggs from free-range chickens
Grass-fed beef
Green tea
Pomegranate juice
Dairy-free golden milk (combine coconut milk, turmeric, ginger, black pepper, and honey, and heat up)
Green juice (or any fresh fruit and/or vegetable juice!)
Bone broth
Fermented foods (kombucha, kefir, sauerkraut)
What About Chocolate
This is tricky. Dark chocolate with a high cacao percentage seems to be anti-inflammatory because it contains flavanols (anti-inflammatory compound). The problem is that people love their milk chocolate, which is loaded with sugar… and that is where inflammation happens.
Final Thoughts
These are lifestyle changes. You can eat all the anti-inflammatory foods you want, but if you are still putting down beer and fast food after training, this won't help you.
No single food is magic. A handful of blueberries does not cancel out a garbage diet.
Remember that inflammation is not always the enemy. Sometimes it is exactly what your body needs to heal. The goal is not to eliminate it completely, but to keep the chronic, unhelpful kind in check while letting the good kind do its job.
So enjoy the dark chocolate and the berries. Just know they are only one piece of the puzzle.
____Dr. Megan Lisset Jimenez
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