Nowhere is summer's glory more evident than in your supermarket's produce department. Stroll the aisles and you'll find bins piled high with every imaginable fruit and vegetable.
Now is a good time to focus on eating a variety of richly colored fruits and vegetables. Including red, yellow, orange, green and blue produce in your diet ensures that you're getting a balance of phytochemicals that not only boosts your overall immunity but also protects you against chronic illnesses like heart disease and cancer. "Virtually all fresh fruits and vegetables have antioxidants and other vital chemicals," says Suzanne Havala, R.D., author of Good Foods Bad Foods: What's Left to Eat (Chronimed, 1998). "But it's relative. There is a hierarchy, and there are some all-stars." Here are five of the summer's best. Avocedo Top your mixed green salad with a few slices of avocado. This velvety fruit not only adds bulk to your salad, but it contributes a significant portion of folate (62 micrograms [mcg.]), potassium (602 milligrams [mg.]) and magnesium (39 mg.). Plus, it delivers a heart-healthy dose of monounsaturated fats, which help lower cholesterol and give the body energy. "Put a little bit of fat in the salad, and you can help slow the digestion so that what you eat lasts longer in your system. You won't get hungry and will probably eat less," says Christine Beard, a nutrition educator and co-author of The New Vegetarian Baby (McBooks Press, 1999). "A low-fat diet is great, but an addition of three tablespoons or so of healthy fat makes for a wellrounded diet." But even good fats must be consumed in moderation. Beard advises limiting avocados to one or two a week.
Blueberries Deliciously sweet and low in fat, blueberries:(one cup) contain about 18 mg. of vitamin C, four grams of fiber, 145 international units of vitamin A and a scant 82 calories. Even better, studies done at the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston found that bluebberries aare one of the most antioxidant-dense fruits around.
Like cranberries, blueberries halt (and prevent) urinary tract infections by altering the pH of urine to discourage bacteria from multiplying in the bladder and urinary tract, according to studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (May, 1994) and the New England Journal of Medicine (June, 1991).
Iced Teas, Health experts advise drinking at least eight 8-oz. glasses of liquids a day, and more when it's hot out. One way to stay hydrated is with flavorful (and healing) teas on ice. Raymond Lombardi, a naturopathic physician, nutritionist and the author of Aspirin Alternatives: The Top Natural Pain Relieving Analgesics (BL Publications, 1999), suggests using four or five tea bags to brew a quart of either of the following iced teas.
Siberian ginseng tea: The Chinese use this tea as a daily tonic and energy booster for an overall feeling of well-being. "It makes the gastrointestinal tract run more smoothly, and it balances the adrenal, thyroid and sex hormones," says Lombardi. Because ginseng is a mild stimulant, limit intake to one to two glasses a day.
Chamomile: Lombardi describes this as the perfect calming tea to help you unwind after a day of hard work or play. "Chamomile is a sedative herb," he explains. "It affects the central nervous system and the musculoskeletal system by relaxing muscles and calming the mind." Drink one glass at bedtime.
Pineapple: This sweet, spiny fruit contains the enzyme bromelain, which aids digestion and loosens the body's mucus to deter bacteria and viruses from setting up camp and causing nasty summer colds. Bromelain is also an anti-inflammatory compound that reduces the joint discomfort associated with arthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome.
Fairly nutritious in its own right (one cup of fresh chunks contains about 75 calories, 25 mg. vitamin C, 17 mg. magnesium and 16 mcg. folate), pineapple is being studied for ppossible cancer-fighting capabilities. Hans Neiper, M.D., a German cancer therapist, reported success with cancer patients using high doses of bromelain based on the hypothesis that the enzyme can break down the cancer, says Patrick Holford, founder of the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in London and author of The Optimum Nutrition Bible (The Crossing Press, 1999). "One French study involving 12 patients with cancer showed impressive results [giving] 600 mg. bromelain a day."
Watermelon More than light More thing dessert (one cup of melon chunks has just 51 calories), watermelon is surprisingly nutritious. It contains hefty levels of the antioxidant vitamins A and C along with potassium and magnesium, which can reduce high blood pressure and protect against stroke.
Even the seeds are high in essential fats and the antioxidants selenium and vitamin E and the trace element zinc. And when juiced, watermelon makes a cleansing drink that helps the body eliminate toxins. "Blend both flesh and pits, and the husk of the pit will crack and sink to the bottom [of the blender], leaving an antioxidantrich juice that helps detoxify the body," says Holford.
- BY : Norine Dworkin
- SOURCE : Vegetarian Times1999.06.01
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