To maintain health you should be eating a minimum of nine servings of colorful vegetables and fruits each day. This amount needs to go up if your goal is to recover from a disease or loose excess weight.
Typically, 1 serving = half a cup, which is really not that much.
The important thing to remember is to consume as many fruits and vegetables from different color groups as you can.
Why is that important?
Nature offers us fruits & vegetables in different colors that are a result of certain types of phytochemicals and compounds that are shown to promote good health and protection from chronic diseases.
It is helpful to know what do different colors represent in terms of their health benefits so we can integrate them easily in our daily diet.
Red colored fruits and vegetables are high in vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium and antioxidants. Some of the examples include cherries, pomegranate, strawberries, red grapes, water melon, red bell pepper, beet root, tomatoes, red cabbage, cayenne pepper, kidney beans etc.
Green colored fruits & vegetables are typically rich in magnesium, iron, potassium, calcium and vitamin K (critical in the blood clotting process). The darker the color, the higher is the concentration of nutrients. Adding dark leafy greens like kale, spinach and arugula as well as celery, broccoli, cabbage, peas, kiwis, green apples etc. can provide the key nutrients that our body needs to thrive.
Yellow/orange colored fruits and vegetables are rich in vitamin A, C and potassium all of them help in boosting immunity. Some examples include pumpkin, squashes, sweet potatoes, yellow bell pepper, carrots, citrus fruits, peaches, mango, pine apple, papaya etc.
Blue/purple colored fruits and vegetables are very high in antioxidants which help fight infections. They are also good for diabetes and brain health. Examples include plums, blue berries, cranberries, purple grapes, black berries, mission figs, purple yams, purple carrots, and eggplant.
White or light colored fruits and vegetables like white beans, cauliflower, turnips, corn, garlic, onion, white sweet potato, bananas, white peaches are also good for promoting overall health and wellbeing.
Another benefit of eating lots of fruits and vegetables is the intake of high amount of fiber that is shown to help promote colon health and lower the risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and high cholesterol.
Eating fruits and vegetables that are fresh and uncooked (whenever possible) is the best way to get maximum amount of nutrients into your body. Colorful smoothies and big rainbow salads is one of the ways I make sure I am getting my daily recommended fruits & vegetables.
Avoid or minimize oils, white flour, added sugar as much as possible. Look for oil free recipes for your favorite meals on you tube, you will be pleasantly surprised. When buying packaged foods, it's a good habit to read through the ingredients. Avoid anything that has added oils, sugar and a lot of sodium (salt). Even when cooking, prefer steaming, lightly sautéing or grilling. If you must use oil, choose the best quality extra virgin olive oil available in the market.
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