Anti-Inflammatory Diet: Foods To Eat, Avoid & A Sample Meal Plan

The good news is that an anti-inflammatory diet is pretty easy to follow. We talked to a handful of qualified nutrition experts to learn more about the diet and provide some fun tips on how you can try it at home.

That being said, there are two general principles3 of an anti-inflammatory diet: Eat whole foods that are rich in healthy fats and phytonutrients and maintain a stable glycemic response (i.e., avoid blood sugar spikes and drops).

Over time, this chronic inflammation can damage healthy tissues and organs in the body, contributing to the following:

In one review published in the Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition13 in 2022, researchers reported that long-term adherence to an anti-inflammatory diet could prevent depression and anxiety, while eating lots of pro-inflammatory foods could promote and exacerbate these mental health conditions. 

Everyone reacts differently to food on some level. What may be healthy for one person may not work for another with food sensitivities. However, there are certain foods that are considered anti-inflammatory for most people. Those foods include:

Here's a more comprehensive breakdown of the foods you should avoid (or limit as much as possible) on an anti-inflammatory diet:

"In many individuals, gluten, dairy, soy, and corn are often inflammatory triggers as well," adds Mahtani.

Here's your 7-day meal plan that consists of a daily breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack, as well as some nutritionist tips for how to easily adjust the meals to make them your own.

Make it your own: "The easiest thing to do is start to mix variety into your diet," says functional dietitian Meg Gerber, R.D., L.D., IFNCP, CGN. "Variety can mean something as simple as a variety of colors—think carrots, tomatoes, and lemons." You can start with a simple recipe like the Lemon Lentil Salad and add different veggies or proteins, or even orange in place of lemon, to switch things up or tailor it to your own preferences.

Make it your own: To add variety and keep your taste buds happy, Gerber recommends changing up your spices and flavors too. You can easily add a different herb and spice mix to the Sheet Pan Provençale Vegetables dish, or try switching up the protein (i.e., using chickpeas instead of beans). 

Make it your own: "An anti-inflammatory diet does not mean cutting out an entire food group, or limiting your options so that you feel restricted. If anything, anti-inflammation is about adding whole foods, minerals, and spices to your diet," says Gerber. You can use shredded carrots in place of zucchini in the Zucchini Bread recipe, or try butternut or acorn squash in place of pumpkin when making the soup.

Make it your own: Roasted chickpeas are an excellent anti-inflammatory snack that's easy to adapt to your tastes—and to make even more anti-inflammatory. Try adding turmeric, which has been shown to combat inflammation14, to this Everything Chickpeas recipe.

Make it your own: Smoothies are an easy opportunity to add fruits, vegetables, and even fresh herbs to your diet. "Fresh herbs are fantastic because they are some of the most potent sources of antioxidants. Some of my personal favorites are cumin, parsley, and cilantro," says Gerber. While cumin might overpower a green smoothie, parsley and cilantro are excellent additions.

Make it your own: You can swap different beans into your salad to mix things up, and even try your hand at sprouting them to maximize the health benefits. If you eat fish, add a serving of tuna or salmon to bump up the protein content.

Make it your own: Gerber says that bone broth can be rich in vitamin A15 and omega-3 fatty acids16, two nutrients that are key in mitigating inflammation. If you're not a strict vegetarian—but simply looking to add more plant-based foods to your diet—you can make the white bean soup with bone broth instead of vegetable broth to up its mineral content. This will also help make the meal higher in protein and more filling.

If you need more guidance on building out a meal plan, check out these anti-inflammatory eating tips.