Vegetables and Fruits
a meal basket
containing apples and grapes onions and asparagus carrots and lettuce Banana
melon corn
A balanced diet should include both fruits and vegetables, with variety being
just as vital as quantity.
You cannot obtain all the nutrients you require for good health from a single
fruit or vegetable. Consume a lot of food each day.
A diet high in fruits and vegetables can lower blood pressure, lessen the risk
of heart disease and stroke, prevent some cancers, cut the risk of digestive
and ocular issues, and improve blood sugar regulation, which can help control
appetite. Consuming fruits and vegetables that aren't starchy, such as pears,
apples, and green leafy vegetables, may even help people lose weight. Their low
glycemic index guards against blood sugar surges that could make you feel more hungry.
There are at least nine distinct families of fruits and vegetables, and each one may contain hundreds of different health-promoting plant chemicals. Consume a range of food to provide your body with the diversity of nutrients it requires. This produces visually appealing meals and increases the range of healthful plant compounds.
Vegetables, fruits, and disease
Cardiovascular disease
A diet high in fruits and vegetables has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
A higher diet of fruits and vegetables is linked to a lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, with an average reduction in risk of 4% for each additional serving per day, according to a meta-analysis of cohort studies involving 469,551 people.
Nearly 110,000 men and women whose food and health habits were tracked for 14 years were part of the largest and longest study to date, which was conducted as part of the Harvard-based Nurses’ Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-up Study.
The risk of
cardiovascular disease is inversely correlated with the average daily diet of
fruits and vegetables. Those who had 8 or more servings of fruit and vegetables
on a daily average were 30% less likely to have suffered a heart attack or
stroke than those in the lowest category (less than 1.5 servings).
Green leafy
vegetables, such as lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, and mustard greens, were most
significantly linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, however, all
fruits and vegetables probably had a role in this effect. Citrus fruits
including oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruit (as well as their juices), and
cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts,
bok choy, and kale also made significant contributions.
Researchers
discovered a similar protective effect when they examined coronary heart
disease and stroke independently and integrated data from the Harvard
investigations with six other long-term studies conducted in the United States
and Europe. Those who consumed over five servings of fruits and vegetables
daily were around 20% less likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke than those
who had fewer than three servings.
Blood pressure
The Dietary
Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) study looked at how a diet high in
fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy products, and limited in total and saturated
fat affected blood pressure. As much as medication can lower blood pressure,
the researchers discovered that persons with high blood pressure who followed
this diet reduced their diastolic blood pressure (the lower number) by almost 6
mm Hg and their systolic blood pressure (the upper number) by about 11 mm Hg.
The Optimal
Macronutrient Intake Trial for Heart Health (OmniHeart) was a randomized trial
that showed that replacing some of the carbohydrates in this
fruit-and-vegetable-rich diet with protein or healthy unsaturated fat reduced
blood pressure even further.
A 2014 meta-analysis of observational research and clinical trials discovered a
link between lower blood pressure and vegetarian diet intake.
Cancer
Eating fruits and vegetables seemed to be strongly associated with cancer prevention, according to a number of early studies. Cohort studies, which track significant numbers of initially healthy people across time, are less dependent on data from the past and, as a result, typically yield more accurate results than case-control studies. Furthermore, results from cohort studies have generally not consistently demonstrated that a diet high in fruits and vegetables protects against cancer.
For instance, men
and women who consumed the most fruits and vegetables (8+ servings daily)
throughout a 14-year period in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health
Professionals Follow-up Study had an equal chance of developing cancer as those
who had the fewest servings per day (under 1.5).
An increased consumption of fruits and vegetables did not lower the risk of
dying from cancer, according to a meta-analysis of cohort studies. It is more
plausible that various fruits and vegetables can offer protection against
specific forms of cancer.
In a study published in 2012, Farvid and colleagues tracked a cohort of 90,476 premenopausal women for 22 years as part of the Nurses' Health Study II. They discovered that the women who consumed the most fruit during adolescence—roughly three servings per day—had a 25% lower risk of developing breast cancer than the women who consumed the least—0.5 servings per day. Women who had consumed more apples, bananas, grapes, and corn throughout their teens and more oranges and kale during their early adult years had a much lower incidence of breast cancer. It was discovered that consuming fruit juices when younger provided little protection.
Over the course of 20 years, Farvid and colleagues studied 90, 534 premenopausal women from the Nurses’ Health Study II and discovered a link between a lower risk of breast cancer in later life with higher fiber intakes in adolescence and early adulthood. Women with the highest intake of fruit fiber had a 12% lower risk of breast cancer, whereas those with the highest intake of vegetable fiber had an 11% lower risk when comparing the highest and lowest intakes of fiber from fruits and vegetables.
Farvid's team also discovered that women who ate more than 5.5 servings of fruits and vegetables (especially cruciferous and yellow/orange vegetables) had an 11% lower risk of breast cancer than those who ate 2.5 or fewer servings. These findings were made after tracking 182,145 women in the Nurses’ Health Study I and II for 30 years. For every two extra servings of vegetables consumed each day, there was a 15% reduction in the risk of estrogen-receptor-negative cancers, according to research on vegetable intake. Consuming more fruits and vegetables has been linked to a decreased risk of developing basal-like and HER2-enriched tumors, among other aggressive malignancies.
Non-starchy vegetables and fruits, including lettuce and other leafy greens, broccoli, bok choy, cabbage, as well as garlic, onions, and similar foods, "probably" protect against several types of cancers, including those of the mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, and stomach, according to a report by the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research. Fruit most likely guards against lung cancer as well.
Certain elements
found in fruits and vegetables may also offer cancer prevention. As an
illustration:
Based on a discovery from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, a research
line suggests tomatoes may help shield men from prostate cancer, particularly
aggressive forms of the disease. Lycopene, a red pigment found in tomatoes, may
have a role in this protective effect. While lycopene and tomatoes have been
linked to prostate cancer in a number of research outside the Health
Professionals Study, several investigations have not found any connection at
all or have only identified a slight one.
When considered
collectively, nevertheless, these findings point to a potential reduction in
the incidence of prostate cancer with greater consumption of foods high in
lycopene, such as cooked tomato products. Brightly colored fruits and
vegetables include a number of carotenoids, including lycopene, which the body
can convert to vitamin A. Studies have shown that eating foods high in
carotenoids may help prevent cancers of the mouth, throat, and lungs. However,
additional investigation is required to determine the precise connection
between carotenoids, fruits and vegetables, and cancer.
Diabetes
Some research looks specifically at whether individual fruits are associated with risk of type 2 diabetes. While there isn’t an abundance of research into this area yet, preliminary results are compelling.
Certain fruits have
been the subject of specific studies to see whether they increase the risk of
type 2 diabetes. Although there hasn't been much research done in this field
yet, the initial findings are strong.
Greater consumption of whole fruits, particularly blueberries, grapes, and
apples, was linked to a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, according to research on
over 66,000 women from the Nurses’ Health Study, 85,104 women from the Nurses’
Health Study II, and 36,173 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study
who were free of major chronic diseases. Another noteworthy discovery indicated
that increased fruit juice intake was linked to an increased risk of type 2
diabetes.
Furthermore, a study
including nearly 70,000 female nurses between the ages of 38 and 63 who were
free of diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease revealed a link between a
lower risk of diabetes and eating fruit and green leafy vegetables. Research also
suggested that fruit juice drinking might put women at higher risk, albeit the
results were not conclusive.
Berries in particular, along with vegetables and fruits, may lower the
incidence of type 2 diabetes, according to a study conducted on over 2,300 men
in Finland.
Weight
Women and men who raised their intakes of fruits and vegetables during a 24-year period were more likely to have lost weight than those who ate the same amount or those who lowered their intake, according to data from the Nurses’ Health Studies and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. Starchy vegetables including potatoes, corn, and peas were linked to weight increase, but berries, apples, pears, soy, and cauliflower were linked to weight decrease. But bear in mind that increasing the amount of produce in your diet won't help you lose weight unless it takes the place of another meal, like the refined carbs found in crackers and white bread.
Gastrointestinal health
The indigestible fiber found in fruits and vegetables swells as it moves through the digestive system after absorbing water. This can alleviate or prevent constipation by encouraging regular bowel movements and reducing the symptoms of an irritated colon. Insoluble fiber's bulking and softening properties also lower extraintestinal pressure and may help avoid diverticulosis.
Vision
Consuming fruits and
vegetables can also help maintain the health of your eyes and may be able to
avoid macular degeneration and cataracts, two prevalent aging-related eye
conditions that affect millions of Americans over 65. 20–23] In particular,
lutein and zeaxanthin appear to lower the risk of cataract development.
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