Inflammation plays a key role in the risk of cardiovascular diseases. With low-grade or chronic inflammation, your immune system remains slightly activated. Regular exercise, relaxation, rest, and a healthy diet can help prevent inflammation. Starting your day with a healthy breakfast sets your immune system on the right track. After all, a good beginning is half the battle!
Vegetables and Fruits
Since they are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, fresh fruits should be part of an anti-inflammatory breakfast. All fruits are beneficial, but if possible, prioritize red fruits, citrus fruits, and kiwis. The colorful skins of these fruits indicate their abundance of protective components. Eat the whole fruit rather than just its juice to also benefit from the healthy fibers, as fruit juice contains a lot of sugar.
Green leafy vegetables give your body a healthy kickstart, as they are rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fibers. While vegetables might not be the first ingredient that comes to mind for a smoothie, there are many delicious variations full of green vegetables. You can also opt for a warm salad in the morning, using kale or spinach as a base. Add some nuts, seeds, a boiled egg, or a piece of grilled chicken or turkey, and you’ve created a power-packed meal to start your day.
Healthy Breakfast is Easy
Eggs are super healthy. They contain a wide range of beneficial nutrients like iron, choline, folic acid, sulfur, zinc, and vitamins B2, B12, E, and D. Eggs also have antioxidants that may help prevent age-related eye diseases such as cataracts and lower blood pressure. For a quick option, make a fried or scrambled egg. If you have more time, try a vegetable omelet with mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, and perhaps some zucchini, or go for an avocado, spinach, arugula, and feta version.
If you love bread in the morning, choose sourdough bread! It's made through fermentation, which improves digestibility and nutrient absorption, an excellent idea if you want to reduce chronic inflammation. Opt for wholemeal bread, preferably low in gluten (like einkorn), to protect the gut.
Are you a fan of breakfast cereals? Replace your cornflakes with oats. And don’t forget omega-3! These fatty acids help balance omega-6 (too much can cause inflammation) with omega-3. Sprinkle some flaxseeds, chia seeds, or hemp seeds on your breakfast, and add some nuts.
Beverages
Healthy breakfast drinks include milk, water, tea, or coffee—without sugar. For an extra anti-inflammatory boost, try nettle tea or a golden latte. Nettle tea has a combination of minerals, sitosterols, and flavonoids with anti-inflammatory effects. It has a mildly spicy taste and pairs well with a green juice or herbal tea.
A golden latte strengthens your immune system. Mix turmeric with (coconut) milk, cinnamon, and ginger, and add a pinch of pepper and a bit of honey. Turmeric’s curcuminoids provide potent anti-inflammatory benefits.
For further immune support, consider supplements. Tyranos Flex contains curcumin in the right dosage. Our curcumin (in BCM-95®) is the world’s most studied bioavailable curcumin, absorbed up to seven times better than regular curcumin. Clinical studies on curcumin use dosages of 1,000 mg, while many supplements contain only a fraction of that amount.
3 Anti-Inflammatory Breakfast Recipes:
Recipe 1: Continental with a Twist
- 2 slices of sourdough bread + nut butter
- 1 sheep’s milk yogurt
- 1 small bowl of strawberries
- 1 herbal chai tea with turmeric and ginger
Recipe 2: Special Anti-Inflammatory Breakfast
- 50-60 g oats + 1 tbsp chia seeds + 1 tbsp goji berries + 5 nuts + 1 kiwi in pieces + 125 ml almond milk
- 1 green tea with lemon and ginger
Recipe 3: Savory Brunch
- 1 buckwheat pancake + spinach turmeric omelet (2 eggs + 100 g spinach + ½ tsp turmeric + salt + pepper) + some cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup of light green tea
Sources:
- Hajhashemi V, Klooshani V. Antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of Urtica dioica leaf extract in animal models. Avicenna J Phytomed. 2013;3(2):193-200.
- Jurenka JS. Anti-inflammatory properties of curcumin, a major constituent of Curcuma longa: a review of preclinical and clinical research. Altern Med Rev. 2009 Jun;14(2):141-53.
- Hewlings SJ, Kalman DS. Curcumin: A Review of Its Effects on Human Health. 2017;6(10):92. Published 2017 Oct 22.