Follow a Nutritional Rainbow!

We are constantly bombarded with ‘Eat this and not that’ Smoking is bad’ ‘eating too much saturated fat causes heart attacks’ I am sure at times you want to put your hands over your ears, close your eyes and scream ‘leave me alone!’ After all, with all this information about healthy balanced diets you should know what to eat, right? Sometimes being inundated with somewhat ever changing information it can be hard to understand why you should be ‘eating this and not that’ Perhaps it would be helpful if you were to get your head around a bit of science behind one of the main ‘eat this’ statements ? ‘As part of our balanced diet (protein, carbohydrate, healthy fats) we need to eat a variety of fresh fruit, vegetables, grains, pulses and legumes’

But what if we don’t?

Leaving out the above mentioned food groups means that you will be missing out on valuable phytochemicals (non-nutritive chemicals substances found in plants). Found naturally in fruit, vegetables and grains phytochemicals give the plants their colour (blueberries) and odour (garlic) which attract bees for pollination or protects the plants against attack by insects. There are many known phytochemicals and the good news is that research shows they can also protect humans against diseases due to their antioxidant, anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. The antioxidant properties are an added bonus as these neutralise free radicals in the body!

Free radicals?

Bet you are thinking how can something that sounds so good be bad? After all there is not much for free anymore. Well free radicals are natural by-products of metabolism but can also be generated by pollution, tobacco smoke, high fat diets. The danger is when there are too many free radicals in the body and not enough protecting agents such as antioxidants. The predominant free radicals cause a cell damaging chain reaction in the body much like falling dominoes. This damage can cause cells to function poorly or die. Antioxidants work by neutralising free radicals and stopping the potentially cell damaging reaction in the body.

Eat your rainbow!

Red coloured fruit & vegetables (F&V) contain a carotenoid phytochemical called lycopene which is also an antioxidant. Lycopene is known for its cancer protecting and detoxifying properties.

Eat: tomatoes (cooked & raw), red peppers, red onions, red apples, cherries, goji berries, strawberries, pink grapefruit, papaya.

Orange/Yellow F&V contain beta carotene which is high in vitamin A (eat carrots for good eyesight), beneficial for the immune & respiratory systems and is anti-carcinogenic.

Eat: carrots, yellow/orange peppers, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, pumpkin pineapple, banana

Green coloured F&V contain the carotenoid lutein found in most dark green leafy vegetables. It is protective in heart disease, lowers risk of cataracts and is antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiviral and anti-carcinogenic

Eat: spinach, kale, broccoli, lettuce, asparagus, cabbage, endives, parsley, peas, green pepper, green apples, watercress, carrot tops, brussels sprouts, courgettes, kiwi fruit

Purple/blue/black F&V have anthocyanins, an antioxidant which shows beneficial effects on blood circulation, its anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic.

Eat: Blueberry, blackcurrent, cherries, black grapes, aubergine, plums, figs radishes, purple potatoes and red cabbage.

White F&V contains various antioxidants and is said to have beneficial effects on the immune system, be anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial, antimicrobial and anti-carcinogenic

Eat: garlic, onion, cauliflower, cabbage, lettuce, cucumber, brown rice, quinoa, celery, grapes.

There you have it- your very own Rainbow to chase. Why not add some of these from each colour to your grocery list now? If you are worried you are not getting enough protective foods in your diet a qualified nutritional therapist can analyse your diet.

Nourishing well wishes

Angelique

Consult your doctor or health care practitioner for any health problems, before embarking on any new health regimes, using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications or food programmes.