How To Eat More Vegetables And Fruits
When you're trying to eat a healthy diet, you want to do the things that make the biggest impact on your health. This may come as no surprise, but eating more vegetables and fruits are at the top of that list. Here's why they're so good for you, and how to eat more vegetables and fruits.
There's a lot of conflicting information surrounding nutrition. One day eggs are bad for you, the next day they’re good. One nutritionist will tell you that coconut oil is healthy, another will tell you to avoid it.
There is one aspect of healthy eating, though, that everyone agrees on: you should eat plenty of vegetables!
Vegetables (including beans) are among the healthiest and most nutritious foods you can eat. They are naturally low in calories, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium. Eating a variety of vegetables can help you control your weight and blood pressure, reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke, and provide your body with key nutrients such as fiber, calcium, iron, folate, potassium, vitamins A and C, and magnesium.
Fruits are also full of nutrients and fiber, and are an important part of a healthy eating pattern.
I’ve heard people argue that fruit has too much sugar so you should avoid it. I absolutely disagree. This argument confuses natural sugar, like the kind found in fruit, with added sugars, which you should try to limit.
The fiber and nutrients in whole fruits slows their digestion so the sugar in fruit gets released slowly, unlike the flood of sugar released into your bloodstream from products with added sugar.
What Do The Nutrients In Whole Vegetables And Fruits Do?
Fiber slows digestion and makes you feel full, so you’re less likely to overeat. Fiber also helps reduce blood cholesterol levels and may reduce the risk of heart disease.
In addition, fiber serves as a source of fuel for your healthy gut bacteria. Those good bacteria are essential for digestion as well as reducing inflammation, which has many important health implications. It’s very important to keep plenty of different types of good bacteria in your system at all times. Doing so enhances your ability to absorb nutrients and minerals, lowers some risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and promotes weight loss.
Calcium is essential for the development, growth, and maintenance of your bones and teeth. It is also needed for your nerves and muscles to function normally.
Iron is used to carry oxygen in the blood.
Folate helps the body form red blood cells. Women who are planning to have a child need enough folate to reduce the risk of birth defects.
Potassium maintains healthy blood pressure.
Vitamin A keeps eyes and skin healthy and protects against infections.
Vitamin C helps in iron absorption, heals cuts and wounds and keeps teeth and gums healthy.
Magnesium is necessary for healthy bones and for the enzymes in your body to work properly.
These are just a few examples. Whole vegetables and fruits contain many more beneficial nutrients and phytochemicals.
You might think – why can’t I just take a vitamin supplement to get these nutrients?
Research has found that supplements don’t improve health outcomes for the majority of people, and that it’s important to get your nutrients from whole foods. Scientists aren’t exactly sure why, but when you isolate a single nutrient out of a food, it doesn’t have the same effect as it does when it comes from a whole food like a whole vegetable or fruit.
It seems that all of the nutrients and other elements in a whole food work together to confer their benefits, so you can’t get those same benefits by swallowing a pill.
How Many Servings Of Fruits And Vegetables Should You Eat?
You should aim to eat as many vegetables as possible each day. The more, the better! At a minimum, aim for at least 5 daily servings to ensure you’re getting plenty of nutrients. A serving is generally about half a cup of cooked or raw vegetables.
For fruit, aim for at least 2 servings of whole fruits (not fruit juice or flavorings). A serving of fruit is generally one piece of fruit - a whole banana, apple, or orange is 1 serving. One cup of cut up fruit is also 1 serving.
As with all goals, it’s important to start slowly and set realistic and achievable targets. If you’re currently not eating any vegetables on a daily basis, start with a goal of eating a vegetable with just one meal per day.
Remember to make a detailed action plan, and once you are comfortable with that goal, add a fruit, and then another vegetable, and so on.
Strategies To Help You Eat More Vegetables And Fruits
Here are some simple strategies to help you get started eating more vegetables and fruits, even if you're a veggie beginner.
Aim for a variety of colorful fruits and vegetables, especially dark green, orange, red, and yellow ones, as well as beans and peas.
Find Delicious Recipes
Vegetables and fruits can be delicious, and there are so many ways to incorporate them into your eating pattern. It’s not all about salads!
For vegetables, roasting is often the simplest and most delicious way to go, but you can use them in many different ways.
Spend some time researching and experimenting until you find a few options that you like and that you could realistically prepare on a regular basis.
Shop For Seasonal Produce
Seasonal produce is purchased and consumed around the time it is harvested. Seasonal produce is fresher, tastes better, and may contain more nutrients and be less expensive than other options.
You can find fresh, seasonal produce at grocery stores and at local farmer’s markets.
Click Here for a handy seasonal vegetable infographic, or Click Here for a seasonal food guide you can search by location, harvest time, and produce.
Buy Fresh, Frozen, Or Canned
Fresh vegetables are always a good choice, but sometimes you can’t get to the store. Canned and frozen vegetables can be a convenient option.
Canned vegetables often have similar nutrient profiles to fresh vegetables, since they are usually canned immediately after harvesting.
When buying canned vegetables, watch out for sodium, which is added to canned foods to preserve them. Compare the sodium content on the Nutrition Facts label and choose the product with the lowest amount. Drain and rinse canned veggies to reduce sodium even more.
Frozen vegetables are generally picked at the peak of ripeness and then flash frozen to preserve their nutrition. They last for several months in the freezer and can be a very economical choice.
Make A Plan
One of the biggest obstacles to eating vegetables and fruits is that they go bad quickly. That's true, but with a little forethought and planning you can make sure you eat all the fresh produce you buy.
Don't just run out and grab whatever produce happens to look good to you at the store. Make a realistic weekly meal plan and grocery list. Buy only what you need based on that plan, then make a running list of what you've already used for the week and what still needs to be eaten, so you don't forget anything.
Learn To Store Fresh Vegetables Properly To Minimize Wastage
When you buy fresh produce, it’s important to store it properly so it doesn’t go bad. Click Here for an in-depth guide on how and where to store your produce.
If your goal is to eat more vegetables and fruits and you need help with motivation and accountability, contact me! Let's discuss how I can support you in achieving your goals.