"5 A Day for Better Health" - What does that mean? The slogan reminds us to eat at least a total of five or more servings of fruits and vegetables daily to stay healthy and prevent cancer. That's two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables.
Fruits and vegetables contain more vitamins, minerals, fiber and other disease-fighting components than any other food group. The National Cancer Institute tells us that by eating five servings of fruits and vegetables a day we may be able to prevent certain cancers.
All fruits and vegetables have much to offer us nutritionally, however, color can be one good indicator of nutritional value.
Color in fruits and vegetables is one key to knowing how good they are for us. The oranges, yellows, reds and greens in fruits and vegetables are more than just pretty packaging. You can actually fight disease by putting a rainbow of color on your plate and in your day!
RED is the color that heralds the peak of summer with the arrival of luscious vine-ripened tomatoes and juicy watermelons. The pigment that saturates both with color, called lycopene, is one of the most powerful antioxidants yet discovered. Tomatoes supply as much as 90 percent of all the lycopenes many of us get...which could explain why a diet abundant in tomatoes seems to protect against several forms of cancer. One study showed that people who ate raw tomatoes at least seven times a week cut their risk of stomach, bladder and colon cancers by half. Another study showed that men who ate four to seven servings of tomato-based foods a week -- from pizza sauce to tomato juice -- were 20 percent less likely to develop prostate cancer than men who avoided tomatoes. Men who ate ten servings or more cut their risk nearly in half.
GREEN is the color of broccoli, beans, collards, chard and watercress. Researchers suspect that green plant pigment, chlorophyll, is found with lutein, which can help fight cancer. One daily serving of spinach may have enough lutein to cut the risk of many cancer-causing substances that may sneak into the diet. The darker the green and brighter the vegetable, the more it probably has, so GO FOR THE GREEN!
The ORANGE color of carrots, sweet potatoes, cantaloupes and butternut squash is due to beta- carotene, the "orange" pigment. Beta-carotene is an antioxidant and is thought to be a cancer fighter.
The YELLOW color of corn, golden peppers and crookneck squashes comes from pigments such as lutein, an antioxidant. Lutein may help prevent macular degeneration, one of the leading causes of blindness among older people.
Keep colors in mind when planning your menus!
BACO-BROCCOLI SALAD
2 apples (preferably the harder type: Macintosh, Empire,
Cortland, Winesap or Red Delicious)
3 cups raw broccoli, cut up
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans)
1 tablespoon chopped red onion (or white onion)
1 cup raisins
3/4 cup vanilla nonfat yogurt
1 tablespoon bacon bits (Bacos)
1/2 head lettuce
Core and chop apples. Mix all ingredients together. Serve on a
bed of lettuce. Makes 10 1/2-cup servings. Each 1/2-cup helping
is a 5-A-Day serving.
GLORIOUS FRESH FRUIT SALAD (To be served
with Honey-Cream Dressing)
2 thinly sliced, unpeeled apples (preferably the harder type like
Macintosh, Winesap, Red Delicious, Empire or Cortland)
1 cup seedless green or red grapes
2 sliced bananas
1 can (16 oz.) pineapple chunks, drained
1 cup cantaloupe, cut up, optional (in season)
2 kiwifruit, peeled and sliced
HONEY-CREAM DRESSING
1/4 cup nonfat sour cream or sour cream substitute
1 cup low-fat small-curd cottage cheese
1 cup nonfat vanilla yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons lime juice
To make dressing, combine sour cream, cottage cheese and yogurt.
Mix well. Blend in honey and lime juice.
To make salad, combine first five fruits with a little of the
dressing; garnish with slices of kiwifruit. Serve remaining
dressing separately. Makes 8 1-cup servings. Each 1-cup helping
is two 5-A-Day servings.
MOROCCAN RAISIN-CARROT SALAD
1 pound baby carrots
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup minced parsley
1 cup raisins
Slice carrots, diagonally, into two or three pieces. Cook
carrots in boiling water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.
Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again. While carrots
cool, in medium bowl, combine lemon juice, sugar, paprika, cumin,
cinnamon, salt, and cayenne pepper. Stir to dissolve sugar and
salt. Stir in olive oil, parsley, and raisins. Add carrots and
toss. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour to chill and blend
flavors. Stir occasionally. serve on lettuce leaves, if
desired.
Makes 6 1-cup servings. Each 1-cup helping is one serving toward
your 5-A-Day goal.
