Why You Should Add More Red Fruit Into Your Diet
While green juice certainly has reason to be a popular nutritional powerhouse that people try to consume on the daily, it’s best to incorporate more variety of color into your diet.
“Eat the rainbow!” - you’ve probably heard it before. But it is important to get various fruits and veggies into your daily diet that are vibrant and differing in color. Why? Because the colors usually mean that they contain certain antioxidants and essential nutrients that our bodies need for optimal function.
Red colored fruits and veggies are know to have compounds that are essential to a healthy body and mind. The Red color comes from their major antioxidant, Lycopene, which is well researched to be a powerful cancer fighting antioxidant. Certain polyphenols called anthrocyanins also contribute to the red hue. These polyphenols are known to prevent disease, balance gut flora, balance hormones and fight oxidative stress. Talk about POWER HOUSE nutrients!
The three most commonly consumed red fruits and veggies and their nutritional highlights are:
Pomegranates: have high antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect, as well as regulate the immune system, can regulate hypertension and high cholesterol, can reduce arthritic pain, & improve symptoms of fatigue.
Tomatoes: important source of vitamins C, K, A, folic acid, and potassium. Helps keep skin healthy and improves elasticity. Also a powerful source of antioxidant sand anti-cancer/inflammaotry properties. Vine ripened are best and contain more of these properties! Some of the nutrients are fat-soluable so they are best paired with a fat when eaten - think a drizzle of olive oil and dash of sea salt!
Red Bell Pepper: one of the highest sources of Vitamin A (800% more than other peppers), and Vitamin C. Also has Vitamin B, folate, fiber, Vitamin K, thiamine, and a nutrient Zeaxanthin which is associated with eye health, collagen production and immune function.