Eat the Rainbow!
Variety is the spice of life! And where better showcase it than on your plate!
The colors of food have more to do with your health than just looking pretty. Each color represents different phytochemicals. Phtyo-what?!?!?
Phytochemicals, or phytonutrients, you know the properties within plants that aid in keeping us healthy. They are powerful defenders of health. Studies have shown that the nutrients in plants can help reduce the risk for heart disease, type 2 diabetes, combat inflammation, and improve brain health.
In my classes this semester I'm learning how many diseases start out with low-grade chronic inflammation. Insulin resistance, weight gain, hard to lose pounds, anxiety, depression, pre-diabetes, and more.
All start with this most-of-the-time-unknown condition of low-grade inflammation.
What causes this inflammation? Many things in today's world. Most typically its the things you put in your body and use around your body. This can be foods, toxins in make-ups, cleaning chemicals, air pollution, water pollution...you name it.
These things get in and rile up your immune system, and when they don't stop coming in, your immune system doesn't stop reacting. Eat an offending food, inflammation starts. Eat it again, triggers it again. Again. Again. Again.
The hard thing is, you may not even know your body is struggling until you have a health crisis. Your liver can and is inflamed long before test results and health crisis show up.
I have good news for you, you can take control of your health right here. Right now. I'll show you how.
The first color I want to talk about is Red. Red foods contain phytonutrients that help reduce your risk of certain cancers, help protect your brain health, as well as your blood vessels and heart.
Red fruits and vegetables help reduce inflammation (root of all disease) and support healthy cell protection.
Studies have shown that eating strawberries, rich in anthocyanins, are most helpful for the brain. One study showed a whopping 34% reduction in the risk for Alzheimer's just from eating strawberries on a regular basis.
One word of caution. Strawberries show up on the EWG's Dirty Dozen so they are one you want to focus on finding locally grown, grow some in a pot on your deck or window, or purchase organic. This helps reduce the toxins you may be exposed to that can cause the very inflammation you are working on reducing.
Eating the rainbow can help you get a variety of phytonutrients and their benefits working for you today!
Find me on Facebook @MeganAndersonNutrition and on Instagram @Megan.Anderson.Nutrition. Follow me there for more tips and tricks on balancing hormones, reducing inflammation, and using food as medicine.
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