I investigated my mailbox at the beginning of this year and came across this interesting article on increasing the diversity of your foods and felt the need to share some important points with you. I have also attached a handout for you to help you select some more colourful food items to bring into your diet.
“Did you know that In the UK wheat is the predominant grain and this single food provides more than 75% of people’s fibre intake!” There are alternatives to wheat (also beneficial for those following a gluten free diet) such as Buckwheat, Quinoa, millet, brown or wild rice. We also get fibre from fruit and vegetables, raspberries, legumes, tofu and collard greens such as broccoli and cabbage are good sources.
Often, I feel that dietary diversity is something that is overlooked. I appreciate that it isn’t easy to completely change your diet as it is something I work on daily with my clients. However, once you have got the basics into place and have mastered that (as many of my clients will vouch for) it becomes second nature.
Then you can move onto looking at the diversity of what you are eating. There are many benefits, some that you perhaps might not even consider such as “Studies have shown that a diverse diet, which includes “all major food groups” (fruit, vegetables, dairy products, meat, nuts, seeds and wholegrains) is associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes and certain cancers. It has also been shown to lower all-cause and cause-specific mortality.” Amongst many other benefits.
By increasing the diversity of what we are eating we are increasing the Phytonutrients found in fruits and vegetables including carotenoids, flavonoids and polyphenols, these have multiple actions in the body including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects; immune support and modulation; and they also act as prebiotics to support the digestive microbiome.
Sources:
Cytoplan: Cytoplan
W H Foods: whfoods
Check out the article and download the Cytoplan challenge sheet at the following link: – Increasing the diversity of your diet
Healthy Carrot Cake
