Encompassing your Wellness
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Eat The Rainbow
Eating The Rainbow
Try adding colorful fruits and vegetable to your plate each meal. By adding these in first, as you fill your plate, you can crowd out the less nutritional foods and improve you overall diet. When I use the word “diet” it is in the context of what foods you eat during the day not a specific food plan like most people use it.
As you scroll through social media you frequently see the appetizing plates full of color. Colorful plates of food make people more interested, excited and possibly even hungry. The best part of eating all these colorful foods is that they are good for your overall health too. When produce is colorful it indicates the nutrient density of the food.
Colorful plant-based foods contain large amounts of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. They also include something called phytonutrients. Phytonutrients are compounds found within the plants that protect them from bugs, germs, fungi, and other threats. These phytonutrients are good not only for the plants, but they are also good for people too and help keep us healthy. These phytonutrients affect our cellular structure and can help prevent disease while keeping us functioning at our best.
Overall studies show that we don’t eat as many fruits and vegetables as recommended even though we may be trying to eat a healthy diet. When our plates lack a colorful array these foods, it is a sure sign we are lacking the phytonutrient power that our body needs to feel nourished and heal itself. Many of our plates contain too many white foods (often depleted of nutrients), or brown foods (often fried or overcooked), or yellow foods (often highly processed carbohydrates). By adding in the colorful foods, you will crowd out the less nutritional foods and be on your way to feeling great and improving your overall wellness.
Try to include some of these phytonutrients in your diet regularly:
- Carotenoids: These act as antioxidants and protect our cells from damage by molecules known as free radicals. Food sources include yellow, orange, and red fruits and vegetables, for example; butternut squash, carrots, peppers, tomatoes and watermelon.
- Ellagic acid: Provides protection from cancer and has anti-inflammatory benefits. Some foods that contain these are cranberries, grapes, guava, pomegranates, raspberries, walnuts, and strawberries.
- Glucosinates: Help limit cancer growth. Some of the foods containing these are broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, and kale.
- Polyphenols: Help reduce the risk of chronic disease. Some foods that contain these are apples, chili peppers, onions, red cabbage, and turmeric.
- Resveratrol: Provides antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits and may reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers. Food sources include grapes and wine.
By eating the colors of the rainbow and choosing brightly colored fruits and vegetables you will help your body in many ways. Not only does it help you add more variety to your diet but keeps foods interesting and fun. Challenge yourself to eat 30 different fruits and vegetables in 30 days. This is a great way to try new foods and you also get a wide variety of nutrients to improve your health.
- Reduces chronic disease risk. Many phytonutrients in fruits and vegetables have anti-inflammatory and/or epigenetic benefits. These can help you reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, dementia, weight issues and more.
- Gut health maintenance. A healthy gut is key to immune system health and function. Many colorful fruits and vegetables contain polyphenols that contribute to a healthy gut by maintaining the gut-microbial balance.
- Increased nutrient intake. By eating a variety of colored fruits and vegetables you will be increasing the amount of key nutrients that will benefit your overall health. These different colored foods offer unique disease fighting compounds to help you feel your best.
- Reduce psychological distress and improved well-being. Studies have shown that people who ate a variety of fruits and vegetables for 13 consecutive days enjoyed an increase in happiness, creativity, and showed an improved quality of life. Eating the rainbow has also shown to improve your brain power and cognitive tasks. Eating the rainbow adds more variety to your diet but also keeps foods interesting and fun. Challenge yourself to eat 30 different fruits and vegetables in 30 days. This is a great way to try new foods and you also get a wide variety of nutrients to improve your health. This proves to be a winning situation for us all.
While you are filling your plate with all the colorful fruits and vegetables you don’t have to avoid all the other great foods. You can still add in the protein, fats, and healthy carbohydrates.
Tips and Tricks for brightening up your plate.
- Start small and make changes manageable and sustainable. Remember that by filling your plate first with the colorful foods you will crowd out other food options. Try to eat a variety of colors each week but worry about adding too many colors in in one day.
- Variety is the spice of life. Try all the variety of colored vegetables. Carrots are not only orange but also come in purple and white. Eat not only cooked vegetables but also raw. For example, beta-carotene absorption is higher in cooked versus raw carrots.
- Gradually increase the colors of your fruits and vegetables. Combine 2 or 3 colors in smaller amounts at each meal. Adding in a variety of color is more impactful than eating a larger amount of only one color.
- Be adventurous. Try a new fruit or vegetable weekly. Eat seasonally or try a farmers’ market and ask the farmers questions. Seek out new recipes and enjoy the delicious new foods you have discovered.
Enjoy the benefits you will feel while you crowd out those less nutritious foods and fill your plate with all those beautiful colors of the rainbow.
Enjoy!
Wishing you wellness always,
Donna
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