Tips for healthy eating with fruits and vegetables
Zaak OConan

Everyone knows the importance of a diet rich in healthy fruits and vegetables. Most people do not eat enough of these important foodstuffs, and increasing your consumption of fruits and vegetables is probably the single most effective thing you can do to improve your overall health. Eating enough fruits and vegetables does not need to be chore. After all, fruits and vegetables are delicious, easy to buy and easy to use.

In addition, fruits and vegetables are rich sources of antioxidants, which are though to play an important role in maintaining good health. Antioxidants have been studied for their effectiveness at preventing cancer, heart disease and even reversing the signs of aging. In addition, fruits and vegetables are excellent source of trace elements and micronutrients. These important elements are not available in any vitamin pill; they must be obtained from the daily diet.

Tips for choosing the best fruits and vegetables
– When possible, choose fresh fruits possible. Fresh fruits and vegetables may contain more nutrients than frozen or dried varieties.
– Even though fresh is best, frozen and canned vegetables are great for out of season varieties. When buying canned fruits, avoid those packed in syrup and opt for those packed in water or juice.
– Choose fruits and vegetables in a variety of colors. Not only are bright, colorful fruits more attractive, but the different colors indicate different types and amounts of nutrients. For instance, yellow and orange fruits and vegetables are good sources of beta carotene, while dark green leafy vegetables are rich in vitamin C and calcium.
– Be careful when cooking vegetables. A quick steam in the microwave with minimal water added is the best way to prevent loss of nutrients when cooking.
– Keep your vegetables healthy by adding minimal butter, margarine and oil. Most vegetables can be flavored using a stock, a low fat yogurt or fresh fruit pieces.

Understanding portion sizes
We have all heard the government recommendations that we eat 5 to 10 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. This talk of servings and portions can sometimes be confusing, so let’s take a look at just what a serving consists of.

A serving of a fruit or vegetable can be:

– A medium sized piece of fruit, such as an apple, banana or orange
– One large slice of a fruit like a cantaloupe, melon or pineapple
– Two pieces of small fruit, such as a kiwi fruit or plum
– One cup of strawberries, raspberries or grapes
– One half cup of fresh fruit salad
– One half cup of stewed or canned fruit
– One quarter cup of dried fruit
– One half cup of 100% pure fruit juice
– One half cup of cooked, canned or frozen vegetables
– One side salad

Unlike with many other types of foods, more is better when it comes to fruits and vegetables. When planning and preparing meals, it is important to plan ahead and include as many servings of fruits and vegetables as possible. Proper meal planning and shopping are the best ways to meet the five a day minimum recommendation for fruit and vegetable consumption.

Some tips for healthier living
– Stock the fridge with healthy snacks like celery sticks and carrots
– Keep a bowl of fruit, stocked with healthy attractive fruits like oranges, apples and bananas, on the kitchen counter and dining room table
– Drink a glass of 100% pure apple, orange or grapefruit juice every morning
– Warm up a cold day with a steaming bowl of vegetable soup
– Eat at least one salad every day. Experiment with different salad additions, like broccoli, sprouts, carrots and green peppers.
– Snack on fruits like apples and oranges. Dried fruits like apricots and raisins also make handy and nutritious snacks
– Add sprouts, cucumbers, lettuce and tomatoes to sandwiches for extra variety
– Garnish meals with chopped or grated carrots
– Strive for at least two servings of vegetables at each evening meal
– Use your creativity to create exciting vegetable stir fries for family and friends
– Spice up the grill with vegetable and fruit kebobs
– Use baked apples and pears as great low calorie desserts
– Add vegetables like carrots, cabbage, onions, lentils and peas to soups, stews and casseroles.
About the Author

Zaak O’Conan discovers and presents useful information on how to enhance and/or repair your life, body and relationships. You’ll find his other articles on eating better and other ways how to improve your life at http://your-health-center.com

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Lean healthy recipes – Eat a variety of veggies for a healthier you
Fritz Blanc

The only way to keep up with the latest about lean healthy
recipes is to constantly stay on the lookout for new
information. If you read everything you find about lean healthy
recipes, it won’t take long for you to become an influential
authority.

The new food guidelines issued by the United States government
recommend that all Americans eat between five and nine servings
of fruits and vegetables each and every day. When you first hear
that number, it may seem like a lot, but it is actually much
easier than you think to fit that many servings of fruits and
vegetables into your daily diet. For one thing, the shelves of
the grocery stores are fairly bursting with fresh fruits and
vegetables. In addition, vegetables and fruits are some of the
least expensive, most nutrient rich, foods in the supermarket.
With all these fruits and vegetables to choose from, it is very
easy to make these nutritious, delicious foods part of your
daily meals and snacks.

When you take into account how much a serving really is, it is
actually quite easy to get five to nine servings of fruits and
vegetables per day. For instance, the recommended daily amount
actually equates to a quite reasonable two cups of fruit and two
and a half cups of vegetables every day. When you consider how
many fruits and vegetables are available, and how low the prices
usually are, it is easy to see how easy to reach this daily goal
really is.

One great way to get the nutrients you need from fruits and
vegetables every day is to take full advantage of the variety of
these foods available. Eating the same thing every day quickly
becomes boring, so why not pick a variety of fruits and
vegetables, in every color of the rainbow and in every
conceivable shape, size and texture, to give yourself a varied
diet every day.

When shopping for fruits and vegetables, it is important to
choose a variety of different colors. This is for more than
purely artistic reasons. Different color fruits and vegetables
have different types of nutrients, and choosing a variety of
colors will help ensure you get all the vitamins and minerals
you need each and every day.

The more authentic information about lean healthy recipes you
know, the more likely people are to consider you a lean healthy
recipes expert. Read on for even more lean healthy recipes facts
that you can share.

Finding new recipes is another great way to ensure you get those
five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day.
Everyone likes to try out new recipes, and these new recipes may
just provide the impetus you need to eat all those fruits and
veggies.

New recipes can also provide you the important opportunity to
try out some fruits and vegetables you have never tried before.
For instance, everyone has eaten oranges, but have you tried
kiwi fruit or mangoes? How about spinach or kale? Trying new
things is a great way to find new favorites while getting the
best nutrition available.

Many people mistakenly think that they do not need to eat five
to nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day if they just
take a vitamin supplement. Actually, nothing could be further
from the truth. That is because fruits and vegetables contain
far more than the micronutrients identified by science and
synthesized in vitamin pills. While these micronutrients, such
as vitamin C, vitamin A and vitamin E are important to good
health, so too are the hundreds of other elements that are
contained in healthy foods like fruits and vegetables. These
elements are not available in any pill, they must be ingested
through a healthy, balanced diet that contains plenty of fruits
and vegetables.

In addition, fruits and vegetables are much less costly than
vitamin pills. Fruits and vegetables are very inexpensive,
especially when purchased in season and grown locally. In the
long run, getting the nutrition you need from the food you eat
is much less expensive, and much better for you, than popping
those vitamin pills every day.

So don’t forget to get your five to nine servings of fruits and
vegetables every day. It may seem like a lot, but you can meet
this quite reasonable goal simply by including fruits and
vegetables as snacks, as garnishes, as side dishes and as meals.

Is there really any information about lean healthy recipes that
is nonessential? We all see things from different angles, so
something relatively insignificant to one may be crucial to
another.

About the author:

Fritz Blanc is a part time internet marketer who has created
many web sites about various subjects. You can visit one of his
web sites food and recipes at:
http://www.iwork4self.com/summerrecipes/summerrecipes Other
websites by the same author: http://bp-visa-007.blogspot.com
http://quikutz-die-cutter.blogspot.com
http://chicago-dental-veneer.blogspot.com

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Choosing Fruits and Vegetables For A Healthy Diet
Dave Saunders

The new food guidelines issued by the United States government recommend that all Americans eat about nine servings of fresh, raw fruits and vegetables each and every day. This is important to provide your body with the minimal levels of essential nutrients and antioxidants needed by each and every cell in your body to support optimal health. When you first hear that number, it may seem like a lot, but it is actually much easier than you think to fit that many servings of fruits and vegetables into your healthy diet plan. Shelves of the grocery stores are bursting with fresh fruits and vegetables. Uncooked, these provide essential nutrients, fiber and even a portion of the water you need every day of your life. In addition, vegetables and fruits are some of the least expensive, most nutrient rich, foods in the supermarket. With all these fruits and vegetables to choose from, it is very easy to make these nutritious, delicious foods part of your daily meals and snacks.

Adding nine servings of fruits and vegetables to your healthy diet plan is not as difficult as it sounds. Seek a variety of foods; choose foods with different colors because those colors are indicators of different nutrients inside the cells of the food. As a general guideline, the nine servings come out to two cups of fruit and two and a half cups of vegetables every day. Most people who add this to their diet quickly find that they no longer have cravings during the day and save money on other snack foods which typically provide no nourishment of any kind. So not only do you improve your diet, you can save money and experience the health benefits of a diet, high in whole foods and low in sodium, fat, simple carbs and preservatives.

As your wean yourself from a life of snack foods to better foods, you may experience some changes as your body uses the improved fiber and higher levels of nutrients to deal with your biological “to do list.” This is normal so keep at it and eventually you should experience more energy, better sleep and a variety of other benefits reported by people who share a better diet.

When shopping for fruits and vegetables, choose a variety of different colors. This is for more than purely aesthetic reasons. Different color fruits and vegetables have different types of nutrients, and choosing a variety of colors will help ensure you get all the vitamins and minerals you need each and every day.

New recipes can also provide you the important opportunity to try out some fruits and vegetables you have never tried before. Be sure that you’re cooking things lightly to preserve as many of the essential nutrients as possible. Try to avoid putting any of your food through the microwave because the penetrating radiation heats water, sugar and fat molecules inside the food as well as on the surface and will damage even more of the essential nutrients than conventional cooking practices.

Many people mistakenly believe they do not need to eat nine servings of fruits and vegetables every day if they just take a vitamin supplement. Nothing could be further from the truth. Supplementation should be a means to supplement, not substitute, the benefits of a healthy diet. Fruits and vegetables contain far more than micronutrients. They also contain the more complex phytochemicals, phytosterols and essential fiber that you need to support proper cell function and optimal health.

While fresh fruits and vegetables are not the only component of a health diet, they are an essential one and are typically left out of the Standard American Diet (which is S.A.D.). Choose optimal health and choose a healthy diet. By adding fresh, raw fruits and vegetables to your daily diet, you too will discover the benefits that others do when they choose a healthy diet.
About the Author

Dave Saunders is a professional lecturer, and certified nutritional educator. He enjoys creating interconnections through his writings and lectures to help others create context and see new discoveries and technologies in more a practical light. You can find out more about new discoveries how to benefit from a Healthy Diet at www.glycoboy.com

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When trying to lose weight, most people try to find low carb diet information. Fans of the low carb accession will tell you that it is possible to lose weight within a short period of time. Music to the ears of those of us who have battled with our weight!

But how successful are low carb diets in the long term? It is hard to quantify this as most mortals who start a diet tend not to last. There are zillion reasons for this. The fact that you are on a diet is sometimes enough to effect huge food cravings. I dont know about you but as soon as I go on a diet, the chocolate cravings hit with a retribution.

While I think I have tried every sort of diet at some point, the only concern that works for me is to combine exercise with eating more fruit and vegetables. These foods are a dieter’s dream. You can fill up on your favorite fruit, so long as it isnt bananas, without piling on the pounds. Obviously you wouldnt want to eat scrupulous fruit and vegetables. We need a little of all the entree groups in our diet in order to maintain our bodies at their best.

So what should tribe who want to lose weight eat? Well thanks to we said, fruit and vegetables are the super foods for slimmers. These foods are bulky and watery which means that they are low in fat and provide a gathering of volume for few calories. But you cannot just eat the same vegetables every day. You need to eat as many different colors as you can find. Fresh, frozen or canned are fine so long considering they are not canned in sugar sauces.

Start your meal with a salad and you will probably eat less overall. But you besides need to eat carbohydrates, proteins and some fats.

Carbohydrates should include wholegrain cereals and breads as a good source of vital B vitamins. People with diabetes should eat high fiber starchy foods in order to regulate their blood sugar level so plenty of brown rice and pasta. The white stuff belongs in the bin.

It will surprise those looking for low carb diet info to see that we should all include fats in our diets, even us slimmers. But there are good fats and bad fats. Good fats include those found in oily fish and avocadoes. Bad fats i. e. those found in biscuits, cakes, sauces and pre – packaged foods are best avoided.

Eating calcium rich low fat foods is a great notion for those trying to lose weight as the calcium will help to metabolise fat quicker. You also scamper the risk of osteoporosis in later life if you cut all milk and dairy out of your diet. Try drinking skimmed milk which is higher in calcium than full fat milk.

It goes without saying that low carb diet information will always suggest you cut over the pasta with creamy sauces and sugar coated breakfast cereals.

24 Hour Fitness
http://www.www.24-hr-fitness.com

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