Most of us have heard that diets high in fruits and vegetable can help us lose weight, reduce our risk of heart disease, cancer , diabetes, high blood pressire, cataracts, macular degeneration, osteoporosis, arthritis and even wrinkles. And now there is research stating that 8-10 servings a day can cut our risk of some cancers in half!! So why is our diet still so S.A.D?, (referring to the Standard American Diet). We know what we need to be doing so why arent we all eating the way we know that we should? Our S.A.D. choices in food MUST change because with all of the information out there, ignorance can not be at fault anymore.
Adding fruits and veggies to our diet is easy. We love to tell our patients that they should be shopping from the perimeter of the grocery store. That is where all of the live, organic healthy food is that will promote life and health in your body. There are very few things from the middle, i.e. cereals, pastas, breads, sugar, boxed meals, that are promoting life in your body. They are full of preservatives, fillers, and empty calories. If they can sit on the shelf for who knows how long, then live in your pantry for another month to year, that is not something you want to put in your body. Most of these foods will also increase the acidity of you body which has been linked to causing and progressing many disease processes as opposed to alkalizing fruits and vegetables.
You would be surprised how easy it is when you go to the grocery to sneak in more fruits and veggies. Yogurt and berries for breakfast, a “colorful” salad with as many veggies as you can get on it for lunch, and a meat/fish with 2 sides for dinner and you have your 8-10 servings for the day! There are also supplements in the marketplace now that can help on not so healthy days. We have one in our office called Greens First that has the antioxidant power of 15+ servings of fruits and vegetables in one easy glass.