A healthy diet can reduce your risk for many chronic diseases, and fruits and vegetables can be excellent choices for when you are trying to improve your diet. Someone on a 2,000-calorie diet should get at least two cups of fruit and two and one-half cups of vegetables per day, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Nearly all choices are healthy because they provide essential nutrients.
Leafy Green Vegetables
Leafy greens are low in calories, and examples include romaine lettuce, kale, spinach, broccoli, arugula, chard, mustard greens and dandelion greens. They provide vitamin A, which supports healthy vision, vitamin C, an antioxidant, and vitamin K, which is essential for proper blood clotting. They supply iron and calcium too. Increase your intake by having them in salads, as side dishes or cooking them into dishes such as stir-fries or soups.
Snack Fruits
Fruits that you eat for snacks can be healthy not only because of their essential nutrients, but also because they may replace higher-calorie, unhealthy snacks. Most fruit is fat-free or very low in fat. Berries, such as strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and raspberries and citrus fruits, such as oranges and tangerines, provide vitamin C and dietary fiber. Other good sources of fiber are apples, pears and dried fruit. Melons are also a good source of vitamin A.
Fatty Fruits
Avocados and olives provide heart-healthy monounsaturated fatty acids, which may lower levels of bad LDL cholesterol in your blood, according to the Mayo Clinic. They supply the antioxidant vitamin E too. Olive oil, peanut oil and canola oil are also good sources of monounsaturated fatty acids, but unlike olives and avocados, oils do not provide any dietary fiber. Eat olives and avocados only in moderation because they are high in calories, and olives are high in sodium.
Other High-Fiber Vegetables
Eat a variety of vegetables to increase your dietary fiber intake, control your weight and get a range of phytonutrients and essential vitamins and minerals. Winter squash, carrots and sweet potatoes are excellent sources of vitamin A in the form of beta carotene and lutein. Tomatoes provide vitamin C and lycopene, and bell peppers are rich in vitamin C. Cruciferous vegetables, such as cabbage, Brussels sprouts, radish and watercress, may reduce your risk for certain cancers, according to the Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center.
References
- Young Women's Health: Dark Green Leafy Vegetables
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010; January 2010
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: Fruits and Fruit Juices
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: Vegetables and Vegetable Products
- Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center: Cruciferous Vegetables; Jane Higdon; July 2005
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