You Can Eat Right to Stay Healthy
Diets Rich in Fruits and
Vegetables Lower Blood Pressure
Since 1997 we have known that a low-saturated fat diet combining lots of fruits and vegetables with low-fat dairy products can dramatically reduce hypertension (high blood pressure). The changes in eating habits called for in the Dietary Approaches to Stopping Hypertension (DASH) diet include eating eight to ten servings of fruits and vegetables each day.
Within only two weeks the blood pressure of the study participants dropped
significantly. The diet works equally well for Caucasians and African Americans.
Researchers calculate that if the entire
More Studies on the
Health Benefits of Fresh Fruit
Medical studies over the last 20 years link consumption of fruits and vegetables to a reduced risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, cataracts, and some cancers. The high levels of natural antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables, like Vitamin C, Vitamin E, alpha- and beta-carotene appear to be responsible. People who eat fresh fruit every day have a lower risk of having a fatal stroke, a fatal heart attack, or of dying from any cause compared with average eaters who were not in the habit of eating fresh fruit.
Is Vitamin E the
"Superstar" of Nutrition?
Vitamin E can help elderly people bolster their resistance to infection. Researchers have found that those taking extra Vitamin E mounted more powerful immune responses to vaccines and bacterial proteins than those who did not.
Studies have shown that Vitamin E delays the progression of Alzheimer's disease, protects against heart disease, reduces the risk of cataracts and some types of cancer, and combats the effects of air pollution.
However, you shouldn't rely on any single antioxidant. You want fruits and vegetables that contain a variety of antioxidants--not just Vitamin E, but Vitamin C, beta-carotene, and others--in their natural combinations. Eat as many different fresh fruits and vegetables as you can, every day.
Other Good Things About Fruits and Vegetables
• Women with diets rich in calcium and potassium (found in fruits and vegetables) have a lower risk of kidney stones.
• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is now allowing foodmakers to claim that oats may help the heart . . . as long as they also state that the grain must be part of a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet.
• Your body has to work harder when it lacks magnesium, which is found in green vegetables and grains.
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