More and more research finds that shifting your eating habits toward plant-based food and away from processed foods is one of the best ways to avoid chronic inflammation in the body. Why is that a good thing? One of the pioneers in the field of natural and integrative medicine explains.

Andrew Weil, M.D., is one of the most respected and sought after leaders in the healthy living movement. He’s behind a series of restaurants across the country called True Food and now, he has written a cookbook to start YOUR journey to healthy eating.

In “True Food: Seasonal, Sustainable, Simple and Pure,” Weil and his partners in True Food Sam Fox and Michael Stebner offer simple and delicious recipes for those who want to live better but don’t know how.

Weil said one of the biggest challenges to eating better is to convince people that eating food that’s delicious and good for you are the same thing.

In a day and age when one of the most important ingredients in food is convenience, it’s hard to get people to understand how simple it is to eat well.

Dr. Weil offers your first steps for getting started and even picks one recipe that’s sure to appeal to everyone for both its simplicity and flavors.

Plus, find out which spice he regularly uses in his recipes to help battle inflammation. Why is inflammation such a big deal? Dr. Weil lays out some of the long-term health problems associated with internal and chronic inflammation, what causes it and what diseases it can cause in the body.

“Doing anything you can to keep inflammation in check is your best shot at optimum health and longevity,” Dr. Weil tells Growing Bolder. “And the mainstream North American diet is very inflammatory.”

He explains how he wants to help Americans get their eating habits back on track.