Take a bite out of heart disease
By Susan Haine
Suggest: keep the color groups together in one paragraph and give bright colored examples of
each.
Can five servings of fruits and vegetables a day keep
heart disease away?
Experts say yes.
Making fruits and vegetables a part of your everyday
diet can decrease your risk of heart disease, which is
the number-one cause of death in America. According
to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, almost 6
million people are hospitalized each year due to heart
disease.
Fruits and vegetables help reduce the risk of
developing heart disease because they have high levels
of nutrients, antioxidents and fiber. As well, fruits
and vegetables are low in calories and fat and contain
a high amount of vitamins and minerals. In fact,
fruits and vegetables are found to be so beneficial,
that the USDA recently raised its recommendation for
consumption from five a day, to between five and nine
servings a day.
Recent research by the Nurses’ Health Study shows
that people who consume about nine servings of fruits
and vegetables each day have a 20 percent lower risk
of coronary artery disease. This study calculated
that as participants increased their fruit and
vegetable intake by one serving each day, they had a 4
percent lower risk of coronary disease.
So, how do you measure your fruit and vegetable
intake?
One serving is one medium fruit; 3/4 cup of 100%
fruit or vegetable juice; 1/2 cup cooked or canned
vegetables or fruit; one cup of raw leafy vegetables;
1/2 cup dry peas or beans; or 1/4 cup dried fruit.
The National Five a Day Program — a program that educates
Americans about the benefits of fruits and vegetables
— states the best way to make sure you get the proper
amount of fruits and vegetables and get all the
beneficial nutrients they have to offer is by eating
at least one serving from each color group daily.
The most heart healthy fruits and vegetables are from
the white, brown and tan color group (Is this true? Not the
brightest colors?), the yellow and
orange color group, and the red color group. Each of
these groups has particular benefits that can help
maintain a healthy heart. The green vegetable group is
especially high in antioxidents, which promote healthy
cells and the blue-purple vegetable group has been of
great interest because of its high antioxidant
content.
White, tan, and brown fruits and vegetables help
promote heart health as well as maintain cholesterol
levels that are already healthy and produce a lower
risk of some cancers. Yellow and orange fruits and
vegetables also promote a healthy heart along with
vision health, help maintain a healthy immune system
and lower the risk of some cancers.
Along with maintaining a healthy heart, red fruits and
vegetables aid memory function lower the risk of some
cancers, and help with urinary tract health.
Eating green vegetables daily can produce a lower
risk of some cancers, promote vision health and help
maintain strong bones and teeth. Blue/purple fruits
and vegetables aid in healthy aging. They also can
help lower the risk of some cancers, help urinary
tract health, and maintain memory function.
But eating at least five servings of fruits and
vegetables a day alone will not prevent heart disease.
A low-fat diet and exercise is also necessary in
helping to prevent heart disease.