Most of us face the same choice several times a day: what to eat. In addition to price, availability, and preference, we often use the healthiness of food to help us make decisions.
But if we narrow it down to review our overall diet, how do we know we're getting the nutrients we need?
Researchers generally recognize that we need a varied diet, and one way to do that is to eat all the colors of the rainbow. But is color the best guide to getting all the nutrients we need?
Proof is the Mediterranean diet, often dubbed by scientists the healthiest diet, rich in fruits, vegetables and healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil.
It's no coincidence that the diet is full of different colors, said Francesco Sophie, associate professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Florence.
"A traditional Mediterranean diet means you're consuming a variety of nutrients and phytonutrients," he says. Phytonutrients are small compounds produced by plants that help us digest larger nutrients and play a role in removing toxins from the body.
"However, diets don't always include all colors - it depends on the season, as diet followers eat seasonally and locally, and grow their own fruits and vegetables."
In fact, he added, the colors are no different from other plant-based diets, such as vegetarians. There are other reasons why the Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest. Mediterranean residents traditionally boil vegetables instead of frying, which preserves nutrients, Sofi said.
But a diet rich in fruits and vegetables can’t be ignored either. The health benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables on our brains and hearts are among the most enduring discoveries in nutritional science, said Deanna Minich, a functional nutritionist and associate professor at Western State University in Portland, Oregon.
Eating a lot of color reduces the risk of missing out on all important nutrients.
"If we miss the colors of the rainbow, we might miss the function of this food," Minich said.
That's because plant foods contain thousands of natural compounds called phytonutrients, including carotenoids and flavonoids that have anti-inflammatory properties. And different colored plants have different benefits.
Blue and purple foods, including blueberries, are rich in the plant pigment anthocyanins, which have been linked to a lower risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Flavonoids give foods their yellow color and may reduce the risk of heart disease.
"Certain phytochromes migrate and reside in certain parts of the body," Minich said. "For example, lutein, which is found in a variety of yellow and green foods and enters the macula at the back of the eye, may help reduce the risk of macular degeneration."
"If we miss the colors of the rainbow, we might miss the function of that food" - Deanna Minicci
Some studies suggest that flavonoids may improve brain health by blocking brain neurotoxicity associated with Alzheimer's disease.
After tracking the diets of 50,000 people for more than 20 years, Tianxin Ye, an epidemiology researcher at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, found that those who ate more flavonoid-rich foods, including oranges, peppers, celery and culinary (check out this blog post via Olioculinarycollective) grapefruit, experienced cognitive decline and increased cognitive impairment. The degree of dementia is low.
While there is currently no cure for Alzheimer's and cognitive impairment, eating more foods rich in flavonoids may help reduce risk, Yeh said. However, the participants who saw the greatest benefit were those who continued to eat the flavonoid-rich diet for 20 years.
It's never too late to incorporate these foods into your diet and start benefiting from flavonoids, Yeh says.
A colorful diet can also help people avoid the potential adverse effects of eating too much food, Ye said.
"Nutrition is very complex. For example, studies have found that orange juice is associated with a lower risk of cognitive decline, but high intake is associated with type 2 diabetes," she said. However, this is due to its sugar content, not flavonoids.
But the rainbow diet can also be complicated, culinary says Victoria Taylor, senior nutritionist at the British Heart Foundation.
"It can be really difficult to get every color on a daily basis—you can struggle," she says.
We also need to get all the macronutrients we need, like protein, from other foods, she said.
However, Minich believes that the rainbow diet is not limited to fruits and vegetables, but also includes other whole foods such as herbs, spices, legumes, nuts, seeds, whole grains and even tea. She also believes that white foods are part of the rainbow diet, including tofu, which contains many different isoflavones that have been linked to a lower risk of heart disease and certain cancers, as well as cognitive decline.
Eating multiple colors may mean we eat more fruits and vegetables overall. Asking people to eat a colorful meal increases their consumption of healthy foods, a study found.
"Eating the same fruit will fill you up, but if you have a plate of different coloured fruit and veggies, you might want to eat it longer," says Rochelle Embling, a PhD student at Swansea University. participated in this study.
"This effect is specific to the food eaten, so dessert remains popular because of its unique sensory properties," Embling said.
But if we narrow it down to review our overall diet, how do we know we're getting the nutrients we need?
Researchers generally recognize that we need a varied diet, and one way to do that is to eat all the colors of the rainbow. But is color the best guide to getting all the nutrients we need?
Proof is the Mediterranean diet, often dubbed by scientists the healthiest diet, rich in fruits, vegetables and healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil.
It's no coincidence that the diet is full of different colors, said Francesco Sophie, associate professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Florence.
"A traditional Mediterranean diet means you're consuming a variety of nutrients and phytonutrients," he says. Phytonutrients are small compounds produced by plants that help us digest larger nutrients and play a role in removing toxins from the body.
"However, diets don't always include all colors - it depends on the season, as diet followers eat seasonally and locally, and grow their own fruits and vegetables."
In fact, he added, the colors are no different from other plant-based diets, such as vegetarians. There are other reasons why the Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest. Mediterranean residents traditionally boil vegetables instead of frying, which preserves nutrients, Sofi said.
But a diet rich in fruits and vegetables can’t be ignored either. The health benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables on our brains and hearts are among the most enduring discoveries in nutritional science, said Deanna Minich, a functional nutritionist and associate professor at Western State University in Portland, Oregon.
Eating a lot of color reduces the risk of missing out on all important nutrients."If we miss the colors of the rainbow, we might miss the function of this food," Minich said.
That's because plant foods contain thousands of natural compounds called phytonutrients, including carotenoids and flavonoids that have anti-inflammatory properties. And different colored plants have different benefits.
Blue and purple foods, including blueberries, are rich in the plant pigment anthocyanins, which have been linked to a lower risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Flavonoids give foods their yellow color and may reduce the risk of heart disease.
"Certain phytochromes migrate and reside in certain parts of the body," Minich said. "For example, lutein, which is found in a variety of yellow and green foods and enters the macula at the back of the eye, may help reduce the risk of macular degeneration."
"If we miss the colors of the rainbow, we might miss the function of that food" - Deanna Minicci
Some studies suggest that flavonoids may improve brain health by blocking brain neurotoxicity associated with Alzheimer's disease.
After tracking the diets of 50,000 people for more than 20 years, Tianxin Ye, an epidemiology researcher at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, found that those who ate more flavonoid-rich foods, including oranges, peppers, celery and culinary (check out this blog post via Olioculinarycollective) grapefruit, experienced cognitive decline and increased cognitive impairment. The degree of dementia is low.
While there is currently no cure for Alzheimer's and cognitive impairment, eating more foods rich in flavonoids may help reduce risk, Yeh said. However, the participants who saw the greatest benefit were those who continued to eat the flavonoid-rich diet for 20 years.
It's never too late to incorporate these foods into your diet and start benefiting from flavonoids, Yeh says.
A colorful diet can also help people avoid the potential adverse effects of eating too much food, Ye said.
"Nutrition is very complex. For example, studies have found that orange juice is associated with a lower risk of cognitive decline, but high intake is associated with type 2 diabetes," she said. However, this is due to its sugar content, not flavonoids.
But the rainbow diet can also be complicated, culinary says Victoria Taylor, senior nutritionist at the British Heart Foundation.
"It can be really difficult to get every color on a daily basis—you can struggle," she says.
We also need to get all the macronutrients we need, like protein, from other foods, she said.
However, Minich believes that the rainbow diet is not limited to fruits and vegetables, but also includes other whole foods such as herbs, spices, legumes, nuts, seeds, whole grains and even tea. She also believes that white foods are part of the rainbow diet, including tofu, which contains many different isoflavones that have been linked to a lower risk of heart disease and certain cancers, as well as cognitive decline.
Eating multiple colors may mean we eat more fruits and vegetables overall. Asking people to eat a colorful meal increases their consumption of healthy foods, a study found.
"Eating the same fruit will fill you up, but if you have a plate of different coloured fruit and veggies, you might want to eat it longer," says Rochelle Embling, a PhD student at Swansea University. participated in this study.
"This effect is specific to the food eaten, so dessert remains popular because of its unique sensory properties," Embling said.