Pigments in various foods act as anti oxidants which, in turn, increase the immunity levels of the body. So go ahead, add some colours to your daily diet!
Think ‘colours’ and all things vibrant and alive come to one’s mind. That colour can brighten or louse up one’s mood is well known. In fact the power of chromotherapy is now being used for healing at emotional and physical planes. And so intent are we on colour-coordinating our clothes, our home interiors and the machines that we drive that we tend to overlook one important aspect of the power of colours- in the foods that we eat.
Cooking habits and kitchen rituals tend to reduce daily meals to a monotonous affair. One gets so used to getting a particular type of onions or greens that, following the path of least resistance, one doesn’t look for anything different. Well, if healthy eating figures high in the pecking order for you, then here’s what you need to do. Spruce up your weekly menu with variety and for that simply look for a mix of colours when it comes to picking up fruits and vegetables.
Recent studies have shown that pigments in various foods act as anti oxidants thus increasing the immunity levels of the body while protecting it against fatal diseases like cancer. But, when veggie-shopping, being choosy about the colours that you like might not be half as beneficial as picking up a mix of the entire spectrum! Remember colourful and non-processed foods are the key to good health.
Here is a list colours that one must add to one’s daily meals:
Go green:
Not only are leafy greens high in fiber, they also offset the rich fried food. Healing greens include Amaranth, Avocado, Bok choy, Broccoli, Cucumber, Kiwi fruit, Peas and Spinach. Of these Spinach and Broccoli are high in lutein, which helps vision. Green peas and avocado are contain carotenoids and zeaxanthin that reduce risk of cataracts and macular degeneration.
A dash of yellow:
If boosting enzyme levels and improving digestion is what you would prefer then add pineapple and papaya to your diet. A variety of orange-yellow foods is also sure to cheer you up and make feeding picky toddlers much more fun. Carrots, Mangoes, Melon, Oranges, Papaya, Pineapple, Pumpkin, Sweet potatoes and Yellow maize are all hit foods when it comes to children. Beta-carotene is also present in these foods that help protect the skin against free radical damage. It also promotes repair of damaged DNA.