|
|
| home : how we can help : prevention, screening, & diagnostics : answers to cancer : diet & nutrition
|
|
|
Summer is upon us with its abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Remember to choose generously from a wide variety of these tasty healthy
foods to receive a wide array of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and
other beneficial phytonutrients.
"Always try for a minimum of five servings a day and don’t worry about
being a glutton with these foods, more is better," says Karmanos Cancer
Institute nutritionist Connie Adair. "Generally one small to medium
piece of fruit or cup of a fruit or vegetable equals a serving."
Have you ever wondered about the beautiful colors of many of the fruits
and vegetables? Maybe it’s nature’s way of enticing us to eat them, she
notes, to ensure that we receive their health benefits. Research is
revealing that these deep colors are more than something pretty to look
at —they’re actually health promoting compounds.
Beta-carotene for example is a well-known pigment that gives the orange
and yellow colors to many vegetables and fruits. Its health benefits
have been extensively studied. Lycopene, the substance that makes
tomatoes red, has been shown to reduce the size of prostate tumors and
is currently being studied as a preventive agent for the disease.
One of the lesser known class of pigments or natural colorants are the
anthocyanins, which impart the varying shades of red and deep blue color
to some fruits and vegetables. Anthocyanins are flavonoids, which have
been found to be potent antioxidants. Antioxidants are compounds that
appear to be helpful in increasing immune function, decreasing risk of
cancer and heart disease, and possibly slowing the aging process.
Summer is a great time to increase your intake of anthocyanins. Enjoy a
generous serving of strawberries, blueberries, dark berries or cherries
often during the coming months.
|
|
|
|
