Endo Diet Pantry Staples
By Meredith East - Powell, The Healing Yogi
Many of us notice that what we eat impacts our levels of pain. That’s why many endometriosis sufferers follow a form of ‘endo-diet’.
Sometimes following a new diet can feel restrictive and difficult, so it’s good to keep things as simple as possible and start with the basics.
Let’s start with oils. The type of oil to choose depends on what we’re using it for and the potential health benefits. The smoke point is the temperature at which fat or oil begins to break down and starts to smoke. Fats and oils are unhealthy when they start to smoke.
Examples of fats and oils that can be used for higher temperature cooking:
Avocado oil
Rice bran oil
Ghee (clarified butter)
Extra light olive oil
Olive oil is high in monounsaturated fatty acids, it contains vitamin E, some carotenoids and various polyphenols, these components can offer beneficial effects on the body such as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions. Light olive oil has a higher smoke point than extra virgin olive oil.
Oddly enough vegetable oils aren’t made from vegetables, they are often made from soybean and canola oil, many of these oils are refined which can result in negative health effects and best avoided if suffering from endometriosis.
A healthy swap for margarine is avocado, extra virgin olive oil, or almond butter, but if you’re really craving something buttery on your toast, try ghee or real butter.
Other healthy swaps:
Soy sauce – try coconut aminos instead.
Sugar – try stevia, rice malt syrup (a fructose free option) or honey can also be good sweeteners. Try reducing your sweet-tooth though as it’s much better for our body.
Bread, pasta and cereals – opt for whole grain versions. Endo sisters need plenty of fibre and can often be gluten intolerant so find some healthy gluten free options such as brown rice pasta. Quinoa, millet, teff, sorghum and buckwheat are all examples.
Chocolate – I know, I can hear you already, it’s essential right? When required, opt for versions from your health food store that have a high cocoa content (dark chocolate). Or why not purchase some cacao and make your own healthy chocolate fudge?
Our guest contributor Meredith East-Powell is a QENDO volunteer and studying a BHSc Nutrition. If you’re looking for endo and gut friendly recipes head to her website here!
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