Eat Smart-ER!
Most of us know we should be eating more produce each day, but it also seems that we are creatures of habit and tend to stick to the same produce day in and day out. According to a recent study based on government nutritional data, we're coming up short in terms of eating a variety of fruit and vegetable colors. here's the stats
69% of Americans don't eat enough green (Kiwi, avocado, broccoli, asparagus, foods that contain cancer fighting phytochemicals)
78% don't get enough red (berries, cherries, helps protect individual cells from free radical, fight heart disease, maintain cognitive function and slow down aging)
86% don't get enough white (onions, shallots, garlic, cauliflower, foods associated with reduced heart disease risk and increased immune function.)
88% don't get enough purple/blue (Grapes, purple cabbage, protect cells from oxidative stress and slows signs of aging)
79% don't get enough yellow/orange (oranges, papayas, lemons, pineapples, pears, nutrients that help boost immune, protect against free radical damage and help heal and protect skin from sun damage)
this skew toward bland means we're missing out on a lot more than just good tasting food. There are unique phytochemical (plant nutrients) that vary from color to color. These various compounds all do different things to protect your health. If you're eating only bananas and apples, your going to be limited as far as health benefits because your not getting all these other colors. We don't just need "an apple a day" to keep the doc away, but "we need the full spectrum" I love this poster, that shows all the different colors of the rainbow that we should be getting. And I'm so grateful for my juice plus, because I know that i am getting a huge variety (17 in fact, plus the purple 7 more = 24!) of fruits and veggies everyday! I know I'm taking action now to protect my health in the future, have a lower risk of (78% in fact!) cancers and diseases, plus I'm slowing down aging, right, who doesn't want that!!
Most of us know we should be eating more produce each day, but it also seems that we are creatures of habit and tend to stick to the same produce day in and day out. According to a recent study based on government nutritional data, we're coming up short in terms of eating a variety of fruit and vegetable colors. here's the stats
69% of Americans don't eat enough green (Kiwi, avocado, broccoli, asparagus, foods that contain cancer fighting phytochemicals)
78% don't get enough red (berries, cherries, helps protect individual cells from free radical, fight heart disease, maintain cognitive function and slow down aging)
86% don't get enough white (onions, shallots, garlic, cauliflower, foods associated with reduced heart disease risk and increased immune function.)
88% don't get enough purple/blue (Grapes, purple cabbage, protect cells from oxidative stress and slows signs of aging)
79% don't get enough yellow/orange (oranges, papayas, lemons, pineapples, pears, nutrients that help boost immune, protect against free radical damage and help heal and protect skin from sun damage)
this skew toward bland means we're missing out on a lot more than just good tasting food. There are unique phytochemical (plant nutrients) that vary from color to color. These various compounds all do different things to protect your health. If you're eating only bananas and apples, your going to be limited as far as health benefits because your not getting all these other colors. We don't just need "an apple a day" to keep the doc away, but "we need the full spectrum" I love this poster, that shows all the different colors of the rainbow that we should be getting. And I'm so grateful for my juice plus, because I know that i am getting a huge variety (17 in fact, plus the purple 7 more = 24!) of fruits and veggies everyday! I know I'm taking action now to protect my health in the future, have a lower risk of (78% in fact!) cancers and diseases, plus I'm slowing down aging, right, who doesn't want that!!
1 comments:
SquirrelJo said...
Hi there. I totally agree with the colourful eating concept. There was a recent program on in the UK about obese people who have surgery to help them lose weight. The surgeon commented that the truth is that most overweight people eat too much beige food. Modern diets have too many grains in them and not enough vegetables, fruit and protein. Since giving up wheat I can easily eat 8 to 10 portions of veg/fruit a day. Great blog!