Month: February 2015

We all see all of the colors of the vegetables when we go to the grocery store, but do you know what vitamins, minerals and other nutrients are in the vegetables that we eat base on the color of the vegetable?

Here is a list of all of the colors and the nutrients that those colors provide.

More Color More Health

Growing up you may have been told to eat your greens, but what about your reds, oranges, yellows and blues?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the 5 A Day Partnership encourages YOU to “Sample the Spectrum” of the colorful vegetables and fruit available this season.

By putting something of every color on your plate or in your lunch bag, you are more likely to eat the 5 to 9 recommended servings of vegetables and fruit every day. Just think: 1 cup of dark, leafy GREENS, ½ cup of RED tomatoes, ½ cup of YELLOW peppers, 6 oz. ORANGE juice and ½ cup of BLUEberries. And you have 5 A Day! It’s quite simple when you Sample the Spectrum.

The more reds, oranges, greens, yellows, and blues you see on the plate, the more health promoting properties you are also getting from your vegetable and fruit choices.

Nutrition research shows that colorful vegetables and fruit contain essential vitamins, minerals, fiber, and phytochemicals that your body needs to promote health and help you feel great. Here are the specifics…

Reds Vegetables

When you add deep reds or bright pinks to your daily diet, you are also adding a powerful antioxidant called lycopene.

Lycopene is found in tomatoes, red and pink grapefruit, watermelon, papaya and guava.

Diets rich in lycopene are being studied for their ability to fight heart disease and some cancers.

Greens Vegetables

Do you know why this color is so essential to your diet? Not only do green vegetables look great and taste wonderful, but they are rich in the phytochemicals that keep you healthy.

For example, the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin that are found in spinach, collards, kale and broccoli have antioxidant properties and are being studied for their ability to protect your eyes by keeping your retina strong.

Also, research is being done on cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale, and turnips to see if they may reduce the risk of cancerous tumors! Greens are also loaded with essential vitamins (folate), minerals, and fiber.

Oranges/Yellows Vegetables

Orange, the color of a blazing sun, is a must have in your daily diet. Orange vegetables and fruits like sweet potatoes, mangos, carrots, and apricots, contain beta-carotene.

This carotenoid is a natural antioxidant that is being studied for its role in enhancing the immune system. In addition to being touted as a powerful health-protector, the orange group is rich in Vitamin C.

Folate, most often found in leafy greens, is also found in orange fruits and vegetables, and is a B vitamin that may help prevent some birth defects and reduce your risk of heart disease. With a chemical make-up this good, make the orange group always a part of your 5 to 9 a day.

Bright yellows have many of the same perks as the orange groups: high in essential vitamins and carotenoids.

Pineapple, for example, is rich with Vitamin C, manganese, and the natural enzyme, bromelain. Additionally, corn and pears are high in fiber.

Yellow fruits and vegetables belong to many different families, but they all share the common bond of being health enhancing with great taste. Go for the gold!

Blue and Purples Vegetables

Blues and purples not only add beautiful shades of tranquility and richness to your plate, they add health-enhancing flavonoids, phytochemicals, and antioxidants.

Anthocyanins, a phytochemical, are pigments responsible for the blue color in vegetables and fruits, and are being studied for their role in the body’s defense of harmful carcinogens.

Blueberries, in particular, are rich in Vitamin C and folic acid and high in fiber and potassium.

White Vegetables

Vegetables from the onion family, which include garlic, chives, scallions, leeks, and any variety of onion, contain the phytochemical allicin. Research is being conducted on

Allicin to learn how it may help lower cholesterol and blood pressure and increase the body’s ability to fight infections.

Indoles and sulfaforaphanes, phytochemicals in cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower, for how they may inhibit cancer growth.

Polyphenols, another important phytochemical in pears and green grapes for how they may reduce the risk of certain cancers.

Savor the Spectrum of Color All Year Long

There is color in every season. When it comes to your health, you’ll fare best with a multi-colored diet.

Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant, which means that, among nutrients, it has a greater-than-average ability to “quench” free radicals that cause damage to cells. Excessive free radical damage has been implicated in the development of heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and many cancers, as well as accelerated aging

Although phytonutrients aren’t essential for keeping you alive, unlike the vitamins and minerals that plant foods contain. But when you eat or drink phytonutrients, they may help prevent disease and keep your body working properly. More than 25,000 phytonutrients are found in plant foods.

Flavonoids are important antioxidants, and promote several health effects. Aside from antioxidant activity, these molecules provide the following beneficial effects:

• Anti-viral
• Anti-cancer
• Anti-inflammatory
• Anti-allergic

One flavonoid called quercetin can help to alleviate eczema, sinusitis, asthma, and hay fever. Some studies have shown that flavonoid intake is inversely related to heart disease, with these molecules inhibiting the oxidation of low-density lipoproteins and therefore reducing the risk of atherosclerosis developing.

By putting something of every color on your plate or in your lunch bag, you are more likely to eat the recommended 5 to 9 servings of vegetables and fruits every day.

Think color: 1 cup of dark, leafy salad GREENS with WHITE onions sprinkled on top, ½ cup of RED tomatoes, ½ cup of YELLOW pineapple chunks, 6 oz. ORANGE juice and ½ cup of BLUEberries. Delicious and healthy!

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I don’t know why I keep noticing these detoxing articles although today I do. I made a turkey for the first time this weekend and messed up making the gravy. After a few hours of suffering from all the fat in the gravy I have come to the sudden realization that I would like to detox it right out of my body

When we want to detoxify our bodies naturally, we usually look to herbs to cleanse our bodies. You can’t get any more natural than greens that come from the good earth, now can you? However, how efficient are herbs in taking impurities out of our system? This article features a list of Pros, Cons and general guidelines in using herbs as a natural detoxification of your digestive system.

The Good news about herbal detoxing

1. Herbal detoxing is all natural. There’s no suspicious complex formula or secret ingredient, so you don’t have to worry about bloating and other side effects brought on by strange chemical reactions. You should find out, though, which herbs will do what to your body.

Herbs that are known to cleanse your digestive system are Haritaki, Bayberry and Flaxseed. After cleansing your system, it would be great if you could tone your internal organs also by drinking lime or lemon juice. Think of it as a wash-and-rinse procedure.

Herbalists who advocate herbs for cleaning your colon will recommend drinking a lot of water a few days before your actual cleansing, to ready your stomach for cleansing.

2. Herbs can be taken with your food and drink. Enemas are forced into your body, while laxatives and psyllium force things out of your body. Both are rather violent procedures. Herbs don’t have this violent effect, because they need not be rammed down your throat, nor up your you-know-what. They don’t have to be injected into you either. You can mix them into your food, which will even give your meals better flavor. Or you can drink them as tea.

3. It doesn’t hurt your pocket. Like we said, it’s not manufactured in some high technology lab. Herbs can even be grown in your very own backyard, or even a small corner of your terrace if you don’t have a backyard, and if you have the space and the facilities.

The bad news about herbal detoxing

1. Herbal detoxing could take some time. Well, you can’t be expected to scarf a bale of herbs down in one sitting, which is probably the amount you need for instant results. Using herbs to detoxify your body doesn’t ensure an immediate full-body cleansing. Some nutritionists who advocate the use of herbs will advise you to give yourself four weeks for a full cleansing, separate from the two days of drinking more water than you do regularly to prepare your body for detoxification. In cleansing using herbs, patience is definitely a virtue.

2. Herbal detoxing may not be the complete answer. A full cleansing using herbs will mean your bowels are rid of unhealthy wastes and bacteria, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that your digestive and circulatory systems are completely clean and devoid of bacteria also, nor working the way they should. Herbs can clean out your bowels, but will take more time to really clean your system.

However, if you’re patient enough, herbs will do quite well. If not, try other natural detoxification methods, such as fasting, or oxygen-magnesium capsules that stimulate oxidation in your digestive system.

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The toughest part about a cleanse is doing it right and fighting to get though not eating for a while. Of course the most popular cleanse is the master cleanse. The master cleanse secrets will help you to get the most out of the master cleanse. Share this so your friends can see it too!

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When you take a look at the foods you can eat and compare it to those on this page you will see that the difference is in the state of the food.

Allowable foods on the Paleo Diet are in a natural form while the others are all artificial and have been manipulated in some way by humans. When you honestly think about it which would you prefer to eat?

Now that you know what foods you can eat we should discuss those that aren’t recommended and why.

Foods to Avoid on the Paleo Diet – Dairy

Cutting out dairy products may seem strange but it is one of the principles of the Paleo diet. This includes foods like ice cream, butter, milk, yoghurt and cheese.

Now some people on the Paleo Diet do eat diary but on a very limited basis.

Foods to Avoid on the Paleo diet

The reasoning behind not eating these sources of dairy is that they were not available 500 generations ago.

The majority of these products are processed and therefore not a ‘natural’ food. Again some dieters will drink raw milk occasionally.

Another more technical explanation is to do with the way your body treats the calcium in these foods.

This is to do with alkaline and acid levels in your body. All food is processed through your kidneys and excessive amounts of calcium are excreted by your body.

There is no need to worry about becoming calcium deficient on the Paleo diet, you won’t. Plus many of the leafy green vegetables contain high amounts of calcium!

Avoid Salt on the Paleo Diet

A little sea salt added to your foods will not affect your dieting attempts. On the other hand salt found in processed foods can.

Too much salt makes your body retain water and when this happens you will feel bloated and puffy. Unfortunately food manufacturers put high amounts of salt in foods as a preservative.

This is not natural and can have adverse results on your health.

Avoid Potato on the Paleo Diet

Potatoes are other starchy vegetables should also be avoided on the Paleo diet. The thinking behind this is that they are supposed to be cooked and not a true raw food. There is lots of debate over this.

Another level of thinking behind starchy vegetables is the effect they have on your blood sugar levels. Potatoes are known to cause high spikes in your blood sugar level and this is why they should be avoided.

High spikes are what causes you to have sudden and acute hunger pangs along with feelings of weakness.

Processed Foods Can Never Be Eaten on Paleo Diets

No processed foods should be consumed at all. You will notice these are foods to avoid on the Paleo diet. This includes grains, crackers, cookies, breads and canned foods.

They all contain huge amounts of bad fats and sugars. These products can be linked to being a cause of heart attacks, stroke and diabetes.

Processed foods like ketchup, sauces, sugars, oils, margarines, hot dogs, bacon, soft drinks, muffins and fruit juices are to be avoided at all costs. They are chock full of chemicals, fats and other ingredients that you cannot pronounce.

All types of legumes and grains should be avoided as well. The reasoning behind eliminating these foods is that they must be cooked to become edible.

There are lots of foods that you can eat on the paleo diet, in fact the diet is full of great tasting food options that nearly no other diet can brag about however these are the foods to avoid on the paleo diet.

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