Issue 118: Rainbow Foods That Deliciously Support Your Health

We are headed into the warm months, which are the height of colorful food variety. After the heavy topic on genetics in my last newsletter, I thought we’d take on some lighter fare!

Here’s some info on what you actually get out of those amazingly delicious fresh fruits and veggies, and be sure to check out my Coffman family approved recipes to help you use them!

Happy summer, y’all!

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Lush, leafy plants grow heavy with their flowers and fruits as they reach toward the summer sun’s life-giving rays. Small community farmers across the country glory in the beautiful rainbow of colors reflected in the produce they grow in these warmer months, including red radishes, orange carrots, yellow corn, green basil, white onions, and blueberries.

Many of these seasonal foods are available at local farms and markets — and pro tip: the color of the fruit or vegetable we eat is a clue to the nutrition found inside of it! This is great news as we shape our food choices to match the health we want to cultivate.

The CDC reports that an estimated 129 million people in the U.S. live with pre-existing health conditions and chronic illness, like heart disease, hypertension, or diabetes. Even more of us live with niggling issues we may not think of as related to our physical health, like constipation or diarrhea, brain fog, or low grade anxiety. Fresh fruits and vegetables can help prevent and improve both the chronic diseases and the less obvious health issues. They also support our immune systems against viruses and bacteria.

In fact, when we eat a variety of vegetables, fruits, and herbs, we consume nutrients that our bodies need to survive: vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, and water. All of these nutrients give us energy, run our cells, and build our bodies so that we can move, think, work, play, and even manage our emotions. When we don’t have enough, our bodies don’t work well, we become low on energy, and we’re more likely to get sick. If you want a deeper dive into eating nutrient dense foods, read this past CIN newsletter.

Snacking on Sunshine

So where do the vivid colors in our produce come from? The answer lies in phytonutrients (‘phyto’ like Fido, but with a ‘t’), a part of the plant that fights off bugs and diseases while interacting with the sun to generate color. Phytonutrients are responsible for the red found in strawberries, the green in broccoli, and even the brown and white in cauliflower, onions, and mushrooms.

While there’s still a lot about phytonutrients that we don’t know, research clearly shows that they are invaluable to keeping us healthy and often to helping us heal when we’re sick.

Here’s what you need to know:

• Together with the sun, phytonutrients define the color of the plant foods we eat. The deeper the color, the richer in phytonutrients the produce will be.
• The color of the vegetable, fruit, herb, or spice indicates the dominant kinds of phytonutrients in it, which gives us a clue to what parts of our health they promote. I made a slideshow for your reference below.
• Phytonutrients, vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, and water interact in complex ways with our bodies to protect us from disease. They work together, and the best way to get them is by eating whole, nutritious foods picked at peak ripeness.
  
  

Ready to add more color in your cooking? Click here to download my recipes for Mediterranean Eggplant Dip, Corn & Zucchini Salad, and a Cucumber Tomato Salad, and pick up fresh ingredients from a local farm or market near you.

Your Summer Cheat Sheet

Click through the slideshow below to learn how each color of the rainbow directly supports your good health!
Remember: the more vegetables, fruit, herbs, and spices you eat, the healthier you are likely to be!

Be sure to download your (FREE)! "Eat the Rainbow" Guide! A handy printable guide that clearly identifies the benefits of each color group so that you can choose the ingredients to create vibrant, delicious, and nutrient-packed meals. Download it now!