What Diet Does Dr. Axe Recommend? A Comprehensive Guide

December 14, 2025 •

4 min read

According to research published by the National Institutes of Health, chronic inflammation is linked to nearly every modern disease, from heart disease to obesity. Dr. Josh Axe's dietary philosophy focuses heavily on combating this inflammation and promoting overall wellness through a 'Healing Foods Diet'. This approach emphasizes nutrient-dense, whole foods while eliminating processed and inflammatory ingredients.

Quick Summary

Dr. Axe's dietary recommendations promote a healing foods approach centered on nutrient-dense, whole foods to reduce inflammation and support overall health. It focuses on high-quality proteins, healthy fats, and a variety of fresh produce while eliminating processed items, refined grains, and added sugars.

Key Points

Emphasizes Whole Foods: Dr. Axe recommends a 'Healing Foods Diet' focused on consuming nutrient-dense, unprocessed, and real foods.
Prioritizes Anti-Inflammatory Foods: The diet centers on reducing inflammation by incorporating antioxidant-rich fruits, vegetables, and omega-3 fatty acids from healthy fats and quality proteins.
Boosts Gut Health: Key recommendations include consuming probiotic foods like kefir and sauerkraut, as well as bone broth, to support a balanced gut microbiome.
Excludes Processed Ingredients: Dr. Axe advises avoiding refined sugars, unhealthy fats (trans and refined vegetable oils), and processed foods.
Recommends High-Quality Animal Products: For meat-eaters, the diet suggests wild-caught fish, grass-fed beef, and pasture-raised poultry to ensure higher nutrient content and fewer contaminants.
Encourages Healthy Fats: Consumption of beneficial fats from sources like avocados, coconut oil, olive oil, and nuts is encouraged for hormone balance and energy.
Supports Sustainable Eating Habits: The approach is designed as a long-term lifestyle change rather than a restrictive, short-term fad diet.

Dr. Axe's Guiding Philosophy: Food as Medicine

At the core of Dr. Josh Axe's recommendations is the belief that food serves as medicine for the body, a principle he has developed through his work as a doctor of natural medicine, chiropractor, and clinical nutritionist. His diets are not restrictive fads but are designed as sustainable lifestyle changes aimed at reducing inflammation, promoting gut health, and preventing chronic disease. This holistic approach focuses on understanding the body's needs and fueling it with wholesome, natural ingredients to optimize function and vitality.

The Core Principles of Dr. Axe's Healing Foods Diet

Dr. Axe's dietary recommendations are primarily expressed through his 'Healing Foods Diet,' which follows three main principles. By adopting these guidelines, individuals can replace processed foods with nutrient-rich alternatives and build a foundation for long-term health.

Swap Out Unhealthy Fats: This principle emphasizes replacing harmful fats, such as hydrogenated oils and refined vegetable oils (e.g., soybean, canola), with healthy, nourishing fats. Healthy fats are crucial for hormone production, brain function, and controlling inflammation.
Change the Meats You Eat: Focus on consuming high-quality, sustainably sourced animal products. This means choosing grass-fed beef, wild-caught fish, and free-range poultry, which provide more heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids and fewer contaminants than conventionally farmed meats.
Remove Refined Sugars and Grains: The third core principle involves eliminating refined carbohydrates and added sugars. These ingredients offer empty calories, can cause blood sugar spikes, and contribute to inflammation. Instead, the diet promotes fiber-rich, sprouted, or whole ancient grains.

Foods to Include and Avoid

The Healing Foods Diet includes a wide array of delicious and beneficial foods while restricting inflammatory items that can negatively impact health.

Foods to Include:

Vegetables: A colorful variety of vegetables is encouraged, including leafy greens like spinach and kale, as well as cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts.
Fruits: Focus on antioxidant-rich fruits, especially berries, avocados, and citrus.
High-Quality Protein: Sources like wild-caught fish (e.g., salmon), grass-fed beef, pasture-raised chicken, and cage-free eggs are recommended.
Healthy Fats: Olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, and grass-fed butter are staples.
Nuts and Seeds: Examples include walnuts, almonds, chia seeds, and flaxseeds.
Fermented Foods: To support gut health, include probiotic-rich foods like kefir, kimchi, sauerkraut, and kombucha.
Bone Broth: This is considered a powerful gut-healing food, providing essential minerals and collagen.
Natural Sweeteners: Limited use of natural sweeteners like raw honey, maple syrup, and stevia is acceptable.

Foods to Avoid:

Refined Grains: White bread, white rice, white pasta, and sugary cereals.
Added Sugars: Soda, fruit juices, candy, cookies, and most baked goods.
Unhealthy Fats: Refined vegetable oils (soybean, canola), hydrogenated oils, and trans fats.
Processed Foods: Fast food, microwave meals, packaged snacks, and processed meats.
Conventional Dairy: Some individuals may need to avoid or limit conventional dairy due to inflammatory potential.

Comparison of Dr. Axe's Diet Approaches

While the Healing Foods Diet forms the foundation, Dr. Axe and his platform also discuss variations like the ketogenic and paleo diets. It is important to understand their specific differences.


Feature	Dr. Axe's Healing Foods Diet	Ketogenic Diet (as adapted by Dr. Axe)	Paleo Diet (as adapted by Dr. Axe)
Carbohydrate Intake	Moderate; emphasizes whole and sprouted grains, fruits, and vegetables.	Very Low Carb; aims to induce ketosis by restricting carb intake significantly.	Low to Moderate; eliminates all grains, legumes, and most dairy.
Fat Intake	Moderate to High; focuses on healthy fats like coconut oil and olive oil.	Very High Fat; fat is the primary energy source.	Moderate to High; includes healthy fats found in nuts, seeds, and animal products.
Protein Intake	Moderate; primarily from high-quality, organic sources.	Moderate; ensuring enough for body function without excessive conversion to glucose.	High; focuses on lean meats, poultry, and fish.
Dairy	Often limited or sourced from raw, cultured, or goat's milk.	Some types may be included, but often limited to high-fat options.	Eliminated.
Processed Foods	Strictly avoided.	Strictly avoided.	Strictly avoided.

How to Implement Dr. Axe's Recommendations

Transitioning to a new eating plan can be challenging, but Dr. Axe emphasizes a gradual approach that is sustainable.

Start with the Staples: Focus on incorporating foundational foods like bone broth, fermented items, and healthy fats. This can be as simple as adding a cup of bone broth to your daily routine or a spoonful of sauerkraut to your meals.
Focus on Swapping, Not Just Subtracting: Instead of feeling deprived, think about positive food swaps. Trade refined oils for coconut or olive oil, and switch from white bread to a sprouted grain alternative.
Meal Plan and Prep: Planning meals and snacks in advance helps prevent impulsive, unhealthy choices. Batch cooking and having healthy snacks like nuts or raw vegetables ready can make a big difference.
Listen to Your Body: A holistic approach means paying attention to how different foods affect you. If you find certain foods like dairy or even certain high-FODMAP vegetables cause digestive issues, you can adjust your intake accordingly.

Conclusion

Dr. Axe's dietary recommendations are not tied to a single diet but are rooted in a holistic philosophy of clean, anti-inflammatory eating that focuses on whole, nutrient-dense foods. The core of his advice, encapsulated in the 'Healing Foods Diet,' involves eliminating processed foods, refined sugars, and unhealthy fats while prioritizing high-quality proteins, healthy fats, probiotics, and a wide variety of fresh produce. By adopting these principles, individuals can reduce inflammation, support gut health, and work toward a more vibrant, balanced state of wellness. This practical and sustainable approach empowers people to use food as a tool for long-term health, rather than just a source of calories.

One helpful resource that elaborates on the anti-inflammatory principles at the heart of Dr. Axe's dietary philosophy can be found in a National Institutes of Health report on how dietary patterns affect inflammation.

Frequently Asked Questions

The primary focus of Dr. Axe's diet is to promote healing and reduce inflammation through a whole-foods-based approach. It emphasizes consuming nutrient-dense ingredients while eliminating processed and inflammatory foods.

Yes, but it discourages refined and processed grains like white bread and pasta. The diet recommends high-fiber, whole, or sprouted grains such as quinoa, barley, and millet in moderation.

Dr. Axe's diet often limits or recommends avoiding conventional dairy due to its inflammatory potential. However, it may include raw, cultured, or goat's milk dairy products like kefir and yogurt.

Dr. Axe recommends high-quality protein sources, such as wild-caught fish (especially fatty fish high in omega-3s), grass-fed beef, pasture-raised poultry, and cage-free eggs.

Dr. Axe's dietary approach places a strong emphasis on gut health by including fiber-rich vegetables and fruits, probiotic foods (e.g., kefir, kimchi), and gut-healing bone broth.

While not exclusively a weight-loss plan, many people experience enhanced weight loss as a benefit of following Dr. Axe's dietary principles, due to the elimination of sugary and processed foods and an emphasis on satiating whole foods.

Unhealthy fats, such as hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils (trans fats) and refined vegetable oils like soybean and canola oil, should be avoided.