Fruits and veggies can help you lose weight
Science suggests that if you eat your fruits and veggies you might have an easier time reaching your optimal weight. That’s because whole produce, especially non-starchy vegetables and fruits are full of fibre and water. Those two things help you feel full and allow you to spontaneously eat fewer calories. For example, you’d have to eat around 15 medium carrots to get as many calories as from a fast-food hamburger.
Fruits and veggies can reduce disease risk
Probably the most important reason to eat plenty of vegetables is your health. Veggies are filled with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and valuable phytonutrients. There’s a large body of scientific evidence showing that eating more produce helps prevent a wide range of diseases including heart disease, stroke and cancer. Plus, there’s a growing number of studies suggesting that eating plenty of veggies may even lower the risk of developing neurodegenerative disease.
Get all five colours
Eating vegetables and fruits is a simple thing that science suggests could have huge benefits. So, which ones should you eat? Is it blueberries because they are rich in antioxidants, or raspberries because they have a lot of fibre? Fortunately, there’s no single winner. You will do best if you eat a variety of both fruits and vegetables.
Each vegetable contains a unique spectrum of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. The more different kinds you can get into your diet, the better. You can use colour as a simple way to ensure variety. The colour of a fruit or vegetable typically tells you which phytonutrient it is rich in. So, if you focus on getting some fruits and veggies of each of the following five basic colours every day, you will do great!
Green – spinach, broccoli, romaine lettuce, cabbage, green beans, brussels sprouts, kale
Red – tomato, cranberry, cherries, raspberries, red cabbage, grapefruit, chilli peppers, papaya
Orange – citrus fruits, squash, carrots, ginger, peaches, sweet potatoes
White – garlic, onions, apples, coconut, parsnips, celery root
Purple – red beet, eggplant, blueberries, plums, blackberries, grapes
