Georgina Cundall asked:




 

Eating fruits and vegetables is one of the best ways to maintain good health. Fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet. They contain vitamins, phytochemicals, and minerals that can protect your body from diseases like diabetes, cancers, and heart diseases. Ideally, you should consume five kinds of vegetables and two kinds of fruits each day.

People are shifting to fruit and vegetable snacks instead of fast food and candy bars.  It is essential to understand the nutritional value of the foods you are eating to get the most benefits. Many people follow the rule of including at least five servings of fruits and vegetables in their daily diet. Be sure to include a variety of fruits and vegetables instead of sticking to only specified varieties.

Understanding the nutrient value of each fruit and vegetable can help you develop healthy food choices. Some common vegetables and fruits that may be included in your diet are corn, iceberg lettuce, potatoes, apples and bananas.

These are nutritious but you should also eat others for added nutritional benefits.  Eating fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin A, beta-carotene, vitamin C and fiber can help your body to guard you against numerous diseases.

It may be confusing when you try to make a good choice of fruits or vegetables for your consumption.

The following 5 Fabulous Tips for may help you make great choices of fruits and vegetables for your daily consumptions:

(I) Include at least one orange and one dark green vegetable to your daily diet to get some vitamin A and folate.

 

Orange vegetables include squash, carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, or yams. You can substitute orange-colored fruit for an orange vegetable though the amount of vitamin A will, of course, vary.

 

Orange colored fruits include cantaloupes, nectarines, mangos, papaya, apricots, and peaches. Dark green vegetables include dandelion greens, broccoli, arugula, chard, mustard greens, collards, spinach, kale or romaine lettuce.

(II) Do not compromise on your nutrition even when you are short on time.

 

Pre-bagged vegetables, like leafy greens, baby carrots or green beans can be easily prepared for a salad or tossed for a quick stir-fry.

(III) Frozen or canned vegetables have some nutritional value but fresh is usually considered the best choice.

 
Frozen foods retain most of their nutrients.

 

Select only canned vegetables with low sodium content. Or, you can drain these vegetables to lower their salt and sodium content.

 

When choosing frozen fruit packed in juice, select unsweetened frozen fruit. Fruits in sugar syrup contain more calories.

 

Other fruits are sometimes packed in pear juice because it is sweeter than many other fruit juices.

(IV) Choose vegetables and fruits over just buying juices.

 

Fruits and vegetables eaten whole contain more fiber and help with easier digestion.

 

An occasional vegetable juice drink may be beneficial. However, avoid vegetables juices with high salt content.

 

Choose 100% fruit juices over fruit-flavored drinks. “Fruit juice drinks”, (they may contain very low amounts of the actual juice), cocktails or punches.

(V) Choose vegetables and fruits prepared with little or no added fat, sugar or salt.  Some products, like vegetable chips, ketchup, fruit candies, fruit jams or spreads and vegetable or fruit drinks or punches may have a high level of sugar or salt. It is best to avoid these foods. Also, avoid poutine, French fries, zucchini sticks, tempura, and onion rings if you can get, for instance, a baked sweet potato or potato or have a plate of salad instead.

To find out more fabulous information about how to incorporate a healthy lifestyle with more fruits and vegetables order your copy of Fabulous Fruit and Vegetables today.

 

Georgina Cundall asked:

Eating fruits and vegetables is one of the best ways to maintain good health. Fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet. They contain vitamins, phytochemicals, and minerals that can protect your body from diseases like diabetes, cancers, and heart diseases. Ideally, you should consume five kinds of vegetables and two kinds of fruits each day.

Fruits and vegetables are essential components of your daily diet. Some contain natural antioxidants that can help to keep you healthy and fit, providing nutrients which are valuable resources of energy and sustaining the quality of your life.

The common vitamins present in fruits and vegetables include vitamin A, vitamin C, folate and potassium. Almost all fruits and vegetables are low in fat and calories. Many are excellent sources of natural fiber.

Some health professionals recommend from five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables. The serving depends on your daily caloric intake. If you need around 2000 calories each day, you might need up to nine servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

You should get best results if you consume a variety of fruits and vegetables. Eating a single type or color of fruit and vegetable may not offer the required nutrition. Each type and color of fruit or vegetable that is generally available has some benefit.

To get the best nutrients from your fruits and vegetables, eat those which are in season in your region. Fresh produce has the best levels of the nutrients we may need during the season.

If you eat out-of-season fruits and vegetables, their nutrient value might be less, they will probably cost more and their production and transportation may have a greater financial and environmental cost.

Your diet has a critical role in defining your health and energy levels which affects every other part of your life. The fruits and vegetables you consume regularly are a powerful storehouse of beneficial, even vital, vitamins and nutrients which help out body to protect itself against many diseases and other negative factors in our environment.

Different fruits and vegetables offer varied benefits for your health.

Vegetables that are said to be high in antioxidants and nutrients include broccoli, asparagus, brussels sprouts, beets, carrots, onions, cauliflower, red peppers, squash, tomatoes, and garlic.

Fruits that some say are high in antioxidants and nutrients include apples, blueberries, apricots, bananas, cherries, cantaloupe, oranges, kiwifruits, peaches, and pink grapefruits.

Nutrients of Fruits and Vegetables

Fruits and vegetables contain many different varieties of nutrients. Some fruits and vegetables are a virtual storehouse of beneficial minerals like anthocyanins, resveratrol, lycopene, and more phytochemicals are being found as research into the fruits and vegetables is conducted.

Phytochemicals

These plant nutrients help sustain your body against the worst ravages of the aging process and may help to reduce health risks like heart ailments, high blood pressure and cholesterol.

Some of the phytochemicals include:

Anthocyanins, available in blackberries, blueberries, cherries, eggplant, plums, and kiwi fruit are claimed by some to have important properties that may help reduce the occurrence of severity of some urinary tract infections.

Lycopene, available in watermelon, tomatoes, and pink grapefruit.

Resveratrol is available in red grapes and peanuts. CAUTION: more people are finding they may have an allergic reaction to peanuts every year

Suggested Servings of Fruit and Vegetables

People are often confused about the quantity indicated by a single serving or a cup.

Ideally, one cup refers to:

Vegetables

2 cups raw leafy vegetables

1 cup raw or cooked vegetables

1 cup baby carrots or approximately twelve carrots

1 cup cooked or canned dried beans or peas

1 medium potato

1 cup vegetable juice

Fruits

1 cup cut-up or cooked fruit

1 medium piece of fruit

1 large banana

1/2 cup dried fruit

1/4 small cantaloupe

1 cup berries or grapes

1 cup 100% fruit juice

A great e-book is focused on showing you the benefits which are claimed for adding more vegetables and fruit to your diet and broadening the choices which you know about. It will also give you a variety of tasty and nutritious recipes toward the end of the book.

To find out more fabulous information about how to incorporate a healthy lifestyle with more fruits and vegetables order your copy of Fabulous Fruit and Vegetables today.