One of my favorite sources for nutrition/herbal advice is Dr. Andrew Weil, and I particularly love his Eating Well for Optimum Health, complete with nutritional advice for asthmatics and a section of healing recipes. If you�re not familiar with his column in Prevention magazine or have never read his website (see the link below) or one of his books, Dr. Weil is a Harvard-educated physician and author who basically founded the whole notion of integrative medicine. He founded the Program in Integrative Medicine (PIM) at the University of Arizona and is probably the most respected name in holistic medicine.
I like the book for three key points.
Understanding Inflammation
First, Dr. Weil outlines a good working definition of inflammation, setting up a strong foundation for his eating recommendations. The inflammation mechanism is a normal function of a healthy metabolism, Dr. Weil explains. When you are hurt or ill, your body increases circulation at the site of injury. The stronger your circulation, the faster you heal. Inflammation is a good thing, normally. Asthmatics, allergy sufferers, arthritic individuals, and people with similar conditions produce inflammation all the time and/or in places with no injury present. It is the excessive and abnormal inflammation that causes problems. Although I've been reading asthma and children's health literature for years, this explanation makes more sense than anything I've read.
Avoiding Pro-Inflammatory Fats
Proceeding from this definition, Dr. Weil suggests eating the right types of fat to reduce pulmonary inflammation. Here's how your non-scientifically trained and literature-minded Asthma Editor understands the process (you seriously want to read the book for yourself instead of relying on my oversimplified explanation):
1. People eat a variety of fats and oils.
2. The body makes fatty acids from these fats.
3. Prostaglandins, a type of hormone, are by-products of the fatty acids.
4. High levels of certain kinds of prostaglandins produce inflammation.
5. Therefore, asthmatics should limit fats that produce those pro-inflammatory prostaglandins and eat more of the other ones.
As a result of the above process, Dr. Weil recommends eating from the first list as much as possible and limiting foods from the second list :
Anti-Inflammatory Fats
1. Olive oil
2. Flax oil and flaxseed
3. Hemp oil
4. Walnut oil and walnuts
5. Fish oil in the form of actual fish like salmon and sardines or in supplements
Pro-Inflammatory Fats
1. Safflower oil
2. Corn oil
3. Sesame oil
4. Margarine
5. Partially hydrogenated oils
6. Shortening
Completely eliminating the second list is difficult, but Dr. Weil recommends two lifestyle changes that are comparatively easy: use olive oil for everything you cook and drastically reduce how often you eat packaged baked goods like cookies and crackers. You can even bake with olive oil if you use the light variety--believe me, I do it all the time--and limiting premade baked goods will protect you because they are usually full of fats from the second list.
Eat a Low-Protein Diet
Switching to a low-protein diet is the second major dietary suggestion in the book and it flies in the face of the Atkins diet, the Zone, and all the other trendy, low-carb eating plans out there. It is, however, an intriguing suggestion for asthmatics. Dr. Weil emphasizes that no one knows exactly why low-protein diets appear to help, but he has noted the phenomenon among his own asthma patients. This section of the book actually highlights for me why Dr. Weil is such a dependable source for integrative medical advice. He doesn't shy away from making suggestions based on clinical experience instead of research, but he doesn't make false claims, either. Instead, he offers a few solid theories about why a low-protein diet might reduce inflammation and underlines the need for further research.
Here again is a much-abbreviated explanation:
1. Protein is a "dirtier" fuel than carbs and fat.
2. Nitrogen is a by-product of protein.
3. High protein intake equals higher-than-usual nitrogen levels in the body.
4. Excess nitrogen is hard on the kidneys and liver.
5. The imbalance possibly throws the whole system off, making a person more susceptible to a hyperactive condition like asthma.
I particularly like this passage:
Since the immune system focuses primarily on protein molecules in determining whether a substance belongs in the body or not, it makes sense that one could quiet a sensitive immune system by not flooding the system with more dietary protein than it needs for growth, maintenance, and repair of tissues.
Overall, Dr. Weil suggests that asthmatics eat a diet heavy on plant-based foods and anti-inflammatory fats. He offers a few other dietary suggestions like eliminating dairy if milk allergy is a possibility and increasing intake of omega-3's, ginger, and turmeric (all three of which will appear in longer articles here).
Because Eating Well for Optimum Health is a nutrition guide for general good health and Dr. Weil's main focus is healthy aging, it doesn't devote nearly as many pages to asthma as I would like. The entire book, however, is a goldmine of information for anyone concerned with nutrition and healing.
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"Smile, breathe and go slowly." -Thich Nhat Hanh
This article is not written by a medical professional, and information on this page should never be substituted for your physcian's advice. If you have any questions about your asthma and/or allergies, you should always contact your physician first.
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