Fruits and Vegetables Fruits and Vegetables
Harvard School of Public Health

Eat your fruits and vegetables is one of the tried and true recommendations for a healthy diet, and several diseases can help be prevented by eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, according to Harvard School of Public Health. There is compelling evidence that a fruit and vegetable diet can lower the risk of heart disease and stroke as well as help control blood pressure and cholesterol. Diverticulitis is also helped with high fiber in fruits and vegetables.

The latest dietary guideline call for five to thirteen servings of fruits and vegetables a day, depending on one’s calories intake. It appears that the higher the average daily intake of fruit and vegetables, the lower the chance of developing cardiovascular disease.
The heart seems to be the big payoff in eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables. Those who averaged 8 or more servings a day were 30% less likely to have had a heart attack or stroke.

High blood pressure, according to the Harvard School of Public Health, is important to control as it is a primary risk factor for heart disease and stroke Researchers found that people with high blood pressure who followed a low dairy fat, low saturated and total fat diet as well as eating plenty of fruits and vegetables were able to reduce their blood pressures as much as with medications.

Fruits and vegetables can have protection against certain cancers. Eating more vegetables “probably lowers the risk of cancers of the esophagus and colon-rectum” and possibly reduces the risk of cancers of the mouth, pharynx, colon-rectum, larynx, kidney, and urinary bladder. Studies suggest that eating more tomato-based foods (especially cooked tomatoes which are rich in lycopene) may reduce the occurrence or progression of prostate cancer. More research is needed before the exact relationship between fruits and vegetables and prostate cancer.

Cholesterol can be lowered by eating more fruits and vegetables. How fruits and vegetables lower cholesterol is still a mystery, In the study, those who ate more than 4 servings a day reduced their levels of LDL (bad cholesterol)”— possibly it could be that those who ate more fruits and vegetables ate less meat and daily products, according to the Harvard School of Public Health.

Another plus for eating fruits and vegetables is for the eyes. Free radicals generated by sunlight, cigarette smoke, air pollution, infection and metabolism cause much of the eye damage. Again a diet high in fruits and vegetables, and whole grains appears to reduce the chances of developing a cataract or macular degeneration.

One must remember that no single fruit or vegetable is going to provide all the nutrients you need to be healthy. It takes a variety or different fruits and vegetables. Venture out and try dark- green leafy vegetables such as lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, bok choy as well as bright yellow, orange, red and citrus fruit. These all play an important part to make a healthy happy diet: the key lies in the variety.