Daily dose of colourful fruits, veggies may boost immunity against flu.Byline: ANI Washington, Nov 4 (ANI): Want to keep the flu at bay? Well, then make your immune system stronger by having colourful fruits and vegetables, says an expert. Health/wellness expert Amy Hendel says that in addition to vitamins, minerals and fiber, fruits and vegetables contain phytonutrients, believed to come from the compounds that give these foods their vibrant colours. These phytonutrients provide a wide range of health benefits, including supporting a healthy immune system. A study, America's Phytonutrient phy·to·nu·tri·ent n. A substance derived from plants, such as a pigment, that is beneficial to health, especially one that is neither a vitamin nor a mineral. Report, found eight in 10 Americans are missing out on the health benefits of a diet rich in colourful fruits and veggies Veggies of Nottingham, also known as Veggies Catering Campaign, is a campaigning group based in Nottingham, England, promoting ethicalbum alternatives to mainstream fast food. , resulting in a phytonutrient gap. The report looked at fruit and vegetable consumption in five colour categories, specifically green, red, white, blue/purple and yellow/orange, and the phytonutrients found in each colour category. Eating a variety of colourful fruits and vegetables is one way to help keep the keep the body healthy. Foods in the red category are especially helpful to our immune systems, in addition to supporting heart health. Tomatoes, pomegranate pomegranate (pŏm`grănĭt, pŏm`ə–), handsome deciduous and somewhat thorny large shrub or small tree (Punica granatum , red cabbage, cranberries, even pink grapefruit provide the phytonutrients lycopene lycopene /ly·co·pene/ (li´ko-pen) the red carotenoid pigment of tomatoes and various berries and fruits. ly·co·pene n. and ellagic acid. The health benefits of foods in the yellow/orange category support a health immune function too along with vision and heart health. And they help maintain skin hydration-important as we head into these cold, dry months. These foods pro-vide beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, lutein lutein /lu·te·in/ (-in) 1. a lipochrome from the corpus luteum, fat cells, and egg yolk. 2. any lipochrome. lu·te·in n. 1. , quercetin quer·ce·tin n. A yellow powdered crystalline compound produced synthetically or occurring as a glycoside in the rind and bark of numerous plants, used medicinally to treat abnormal capillary fragility. Also called meletin. and other phytonutrients that can be converted into Vitamin A. Delicious and nutritious yellow/orange fruits and vegetables available now include: carrots, squash, sweet potatoes and pi-neapple. For optimal health, aim to eat two foods from each of the 5 colour categories - green, red, white, blue/purple and orange/yellow - for a total of 10 servings each day. (ANI) Copyright 2009 Asian News International The Asian News International (ANI) agency provides multimedia news to China and 50 bureaus in India. It covers virtually all of South Asia since its foundation and presently claims, on its official website, to be the leading South Asia-wide news agency. (ANI) - All Rights Reserved. Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion