Trust a dietitian to recommend bright red, yellow, green, purple and orange vegetables! All the colours of the rainbow! From crispy carrots to plump eggplants and ripe tomatoes. One can hardly ever go wrong!
Vegetables provide us with many micronutrients such as magnesium, iron, calcium, B-vitamins etc. These micronutrients are essential to life and health. Vegetables are also a good source of fiber.. For me, there is just nothing like the crunch of a fresh cucumber or sugar snap pea!
Here are a few other benefits that vegetables may have:
- Help fight disease and heal infections, for example sweet peppers and red cabbage) are high in anti-oxidants (vitamin C)
- Help with blood pressure, especially vegetables which are high in potassium (mushroom), magnesium (spinach) & calcium (broccoli)
- Low in calories (avocado to me is considered a fat source, but I know the botanists don’t agree 🙂 ) e.g. baby gem squash
- Lower your risk for colon cancer as some vegetables (e.g. green beans) are good sources of insoluble fiber
- Great source of B-vitamins (ditch the injections, vegetables are far less painful) such as spinach, broccoli & green peas
- Lower your risk for heart disease as the soluble fiber can be found in a variety of vegetables
How many vegetables should we have EACH DAY..
We need to have at least 2 fruits (1 serving is the size of a tennis ball) and 3 vegetable portions (1 serving is 1/2 cup cooked) or visa versa.
Tips
- Enjoy as a snack (raw carrots dipped in some cottage cheese)
- Rather eat fresh whole vegetables than by juicing all your veggies because every time you juice = you loose fiber
- Fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables
- Enjoy vegetables in soups, stir-fries (using healthy fat guidelines), stews, casseroles etc.
- Use frozen vegetables if you are in a rush – they are blast chilled so often they contain more nutrients than the stuff you find lying on the shelves for weeks
- Use pre-cut vegetables if you are in a rush – some is better than none
- Hold the fat, sugar and salt – ENJOY them just as they are or par-boiled/ steamed and crisp
- Start a garden 🙂 A fun activity for the whole family
- Practice meatless Mondays
Aren’t these just looking so good… Instagram @cathsday
REMEMBER: Love Food. Eat Smart. Love Life.
