|
|
(HealthNewsDigest.com) – Corn, cucumbers, summer squash, watermelon, peaches, nectarines, blueberries, cherries, plums, tomatoes – these are just some of the delicious fresh summer foods available. Buy them, eat them, and explore varieties you have not tried before. Even the most humble fruit or vegetable is a complex collection of healthy, wholesome compounds that function in a dynamic and interdependent way. The fruits and vegetables you eat today will protect you against health problems in the future.
Even though most people agree that fruits and vegetables are good for you and we all should be eating more of them, few of us do. A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6426a1.htm?s_cid=mm6426a1_w) showed once again that American adults simply do not eat fruits and vegetables. Seventy-six percent do not eat enough fruit and 87% do not eat enough vegetables. California, perceived as a health-conscious state, does the best. But even in sunny California, where a great deal of fresh produce is grown, less than 18% of adults eat enough fruit daily and only 13% get enough vegetables. Kids don’t fare much better. Sixty percent of children eat too few fruits each day and a whopping 93% eat too few vegetables. We are truly missing out on the benefits of nature’s ultimate superfoods.
Two recent studies (see below) with very large groups of people showed that high intakes of vitamin C reduced the risk of heart disease and high intakes of carotenes protected against some forms of cancer. Vitamin C-rich fruits include apricots, blackberries, cantaloupe, cherries, guava, honeydew, kiwis, mango, nectarines, oranges, strawberries and watermelon. Carotenes are pigments that give fruits and vegetables their yellow to orange color. These substances can be converted to vitamin A in the body and on their own act as powerful antioxidants to protect cells from damage.
In addition to the fiber, vitamins and minerals that fruits and vegetables contain, they are an excellent source of phytochemicals. These are compounds that protect plants from bacteria, fungi, damaging free radicals that attack cells, and high levels of ultraviolet light. Every time you eat a serving these health-promoting compounds wind up in your tissues and you reap health benefits, too. You don’t need to worry about which fruit or vegetable contains what nutrient or health-promoting substance. Just eat a rainbow every day. Choose a white cauliflower, red cherries, purple plums, orange carrots, green asparagus, yellow corn or tan mushrooms. Every serving counts.
Unadorned with sugary syrup, butter sauce or cheese, almost all fruits and vegetables are low in calories with less than 100 calories in a cup. They offer a good deal of chewing satisfaction, fiber, and a rich mix of nutrients — all for a modest calorie count. Consider some of these choices. You might be surprised to see how few calories are in 1 cup:
- Baby spinach raw – 10 calories
- Broccoli – 20 calories
- Cherry tomatoes – 26 calories
- Green beans – 44 calories
- Watermelon – 46 calories
- Carrots shredded – 48 calories
- Strawberries – 49 calories
- Papaya – 55 calories
- Honeydew – 61 calories
- Cherries – 74 calories
Many people ask why it wouldn’t be simpler to just take a vitamin and mineral supplement and not worry about eating the right foods. Supplements should be considered just that – additions to healthy eating, not a substitute for healthy foods.
Nutrients work together in foods much as instruments in an orchestra blend to produce a sound that one instrument cannot make alone. The music that results is a balance of tones and harmonies. The value of eating healthy foods is similar. It creates a blend of many compounds that work together. When one compound is isolated or provided in large amounts, the overall harmony of the working relationship changes and the change may not be for the better.
We know that beta-carotene in foods offers protection from cancer, but in a well-designed study (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20155614) when smokers were supplemented with beta-carotene, their risk of lung cancer actually went up. Did the extra beta-carotene tip the scales in favor of tumor promotion? Did the beta-carotene have to be naturally occurring in plants, working with other compounds, to offer protection? Or, maybe it isn’t the beta-carotene that’s protective against lung cancer but some other substance we have yet to discover that is also found in foods high in beta-carotene. We simply don’t know. If we depend on supplements, instead of food, we shortchange ourselves of health-promoting substances that are more effectively packaged in food than in a pill or bottle.
The take home message is simple: eat more fruits and vegetables and you’ll be healthier.
Vitamin C and heart disease study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25948669
Netherlands Cohort Study: http://epi.grants.cancer.gov/Consortia/members/nlcs.html
© NRH Nutrition Consultants, Inc.
Jo-Ann Heslin, MA, RD, CDN is a registered dietitian and the author of the nutrition counter series for Pocket Books with sales of more than 8.5 million books.
Look for:
The Diabetes Counter, 5th Ed., 2014
The Fat and Cholesterol Counter, 2014
The Most Complete Food Counter, 3rd ed., 2013
The Calorie Counter, 6th Ed., 2013
The Complete Food Counter, 4th ed., 2012
The Protein Counter, 3rd Ed., 2011
The Ultimate Carbohydrate Counter, 3rd Ed., 2010
The Healthy Wholefoods Counter, 2008
Your Complete Food Counter App: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/your-complete-food-counter/id444558777?mt=8
For more information on Jo-Ann and her books, go to: www.TheNutritionExperts.com.
###
For advertising/promo please call Mike McCurdy at: 877-634-9180 or email [email protected]