Nutrition Facts
Everyone knows that you are supposed to eat plenty of fruits and vegetables every day, but exactly how and why you are supposed to benefit from eating them is often not as clear cut. This page will provide you with the basic information you need to get started on your way toward healthy diet through your garden. We let you know exactly what the benefits of fruits and vegetables are, including the most important minerals and vitamins they provide to keep your body healthy. We also provide you with a few tips on how to prepare fruits and vegetables without losing the nutrients that make them so good for you. And because vegetables and fruits are only one part of a healthy lifestyle, we have compiled a series of links to web pages that provide activities, interactive tools, articles and facts about overall nutrition and fitness.
Benefits of Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables are great sources of some of the most essential vitamins and minerals your body needs to be healthy. Below you will find a listing of some of the most important vitamins and minerals, a description of how they help your body, and information on which fruits and vegetables contain high amounts of these essential nutrients.
To find out exactly how much you need of these vitamins and minerals based on your age and sex, use the online tool found at Diet and Fitness Today.
Vitamins
- Vitamin A
What it does
If you have ever heard anyone tell someone to eat a carrot for their eyesight, you already understand the benefits of vitamin A. Vitamin A is found in carrots and other vegetables, and promotes healthy eyes, night vision, and a strong immune system. It is also helps for healthy skin.
Where you find it
Carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, kale, dandelion greens, yellow squash, peaches, nectarines, cantaloupe, apricots
You should know
Too much of a good thing is not a good thing...vitamin A is toxic in large doses, and over dosage during pregnancy can lead to birth defects. - Vitamin B
What it does
Vitamin B is actually a family of vitamins, and includes vitamins B1, B2, B6, B12, niacin, folic acid, biotin and pantothenic acid. This family of vitamins is important in releasing energy in your body, as well as in converting food to energy. They are important in the building of healthy muscles, tissues and blood cells.
Where you find it
Broccoli, turnip greens, asparagus, spinach, peas, cauliflower, mushrooms, citrus fruits - Vitamin C
What it does
The health effects of vitamin C on your body's immune system are well known, and many people take vitamin C when they feel like they are getting a cold. Vitamin C is also important for the health of body tissue, gums, teeth, and bones.
Where you find it
Citrus, strawberries, green and red peppers, collards, mustard greens, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, potatoes, kiwi, guava, parsley, black currants, kale, peaches, pears - Vitamin D
What it does
Vitamin D is important for the creation of strong bones and teeth, and also aids the body in the absorption of calcium.
Where you find it
Vegetables and fruits do not contain high levels of Vitamin D - you have to turn to fortified milk, eggs and fish. If you are a vegan and do not eat any meat or dairy products, you will have to take vitamin D supplements or drink vitamin D fortified soy milk. - Vitamin E
What it does
This vitamin is important for the maintenance of healthy tissues in your eyes, skin and liver. It also can protect your lungs from the damaging effects of air pollution.
Where you find it
Nuts, leafy green vegetables, apples, carrots, celery - Vitamin K
What it does
This vitamin is essential for healthy blood because it helps form clots.
Where you find it
Leafy green vegetables, green beans, Brussels sprouts, spring onions, celery, artichokes
Minerals
- Iron
What it does
Iron is important in red blood cell formation. It helps in the creation of hemoglobin, which carries oxygen from your lungs to other parts of your body.
Where you find it
Potatoes, dried fruits, broccoli, leafy green vegetables - Potassium
What it does
Potassium aids in the proper functioning of your nervous and muscle system. By helping your nerve system, it assures that messages sent by nerves get quickly from one part of your body to another.
Where you find it
Bananas, broccoli, tomatoes, potatoes, citrus fruits, leafy green vegetables, dried fruits, split peas, yams, sunflower seeds - Zinc
What it does
Zinc is important for wound healing, vision, and overall growth. It also helps your body process proteins and carbohydrates, which are also essential for a healthy body.
Where you find it
Zinc is only found in low quantities in fruits and vegetables, and the zinc found in produce is not used by the body as efficiently as that found in animal products. Meat, eggs, dairy products and liver are very good sources of zinc, and vegans should take zinc supplements. - Calcium
What it does
"Milk, it does a body good" is one of the most well-known advertising slogans related to nutrition, and its all about calcium. Calcium is essential for healthy bones, teeth, muscles and blood.
Where you find it
Figs, leafy greens like broccoli, kale, collards, parsley
Preparing Fruits and Vegetables
How you prepare your food is almost as important as the types of foods you eat. Certain types of food preparation can destroy the vitamins and minerals that are found in foods, as well as significantly altering their flavor. Here are a few tips on how to eat fruits and vegetables so that you retain their nutritional benefits and taste
Go Raw
Even if many vegetables and fruits taste great cooked or as sauces, jams, or soups, eating them raw assures that their essential nutrients will not have been destroyed through the heat of cooking. Try experimenting with new ways of eating raw produce: grated beets are great on a salad for example, and celery sticks can taste good filled with peanut butter or cream cheese.
Freshness is Everything!
For the most flavor and nutrition, eat produce as soon as possible after it has been picked! Fruits and vegetables begin to lose nutrients as soon as they have been picked, and many also lose their flavor as well. Produce sold in grocery stores is often picked unripe so that it can be stored for long amounts of time without spoiling. This not only compromises taste, but also vitamin and mineral content.
Improve your Technique
Certain cooking techniques, such as steaming and pressure cooking, help preserve the nutrient content of foods if done properly. As little water as possible should be used with these cooking methods, and you should always keep a lid on to keep from losing nutrients. Techniques such as baking, boiling and frying can significantly reduce the nutrient content of fruits and vegetables, and can also add extra fat to your diet. If you do boil food, use as little water as possible, because nutrients can leach out into the water.
Keep the Skin On
In many fruits and vegetables, the most nutrients are found in or just below the skin. If produce is particularly dirty, a vegetable brush can help remove grime while leaving mineral and vitamins where they should be - in your food! If you do not want to eat the skins, at least leave them on while cooking, as this will minimize nutrient loss.
*Note: If you have purchased vegetables or fruits that may have been grown with the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides, peeling may often be the safest way to remove any chemical residue. Many conventionally grown fruits and vegetables are also treated with wax to improve their appearance (apples, cucumbers, pears), and should be peeled to remove the wax before eating.
Keep it Whole
When cooking fruits and vegetables, avoid cutting them into small pieces before cooking. Fruits and vegetables that have been cooked whole will retain more of their flavor and nutrients.
Links
The links below will take you to websites that contain activities and interactive tools or articles and facts. Many of these websites are geared toward youth, but a few are general sites that are useful for anyone. If you would like to recommend a link you think we should add, contact us.
Activities and Interactive Tools
Center for Young Women's Health: Wellness 101
The Center for Young Women's Health provides health information for teen girls around the world. Their Wellness 101 section has information on fitness and nutrition, including quizzes that will help you evaluate your own nutrition, and guides that will help you make healthy choices.
Cool Food Planet
Sponsored by the EUFIC (the European Food Information Council), this interactive Website will let you explore all types of issues related to food and nutrition, and includes games, quizzes, and other tools to help you analyze your eating habits. It has sections geared toward kids, youth and educators, and is offered in six languages: French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, and English.
Kidnetic
While many of the activities on this site are geared toward elementary and middle school age students, it does have a few tasty recipes and nutrition-related articles that contain some interesting facts.
MyPyramid Tracker
Created by the USDA this site is designed to help you understand how the Food Pyramid relates to you and the foods you eat every day. It allows you to create an account, where you enter daily values for the foods you eat and activities you undertake within 24 hours. To get a truly accurate result, you have to log in over an extended amount of time, but it does provide you with detailed tips and advice on how to improve your diet and increase your exercise level.
Thinkquest: Nutrition on the Web
This website is geared towards teens and youth, and features informative information on exercise, health, nutrition, and recipe downloads, as well as an interactive section featuring a diet planner, calorie database, and live chat room. This site is offered in Spanish, German, and English.
NATS: Nutrition Analysis Tool and System
This website can help you interactively analyze the foods you are eating, and help you figure out more about what sort of foods you should be including in your diet to get the types of nutrients your body needs.
Teen BEAT: Basic Exercise and Activity Tracker
This site, maintained by the Dairy Council of California, will let you find out more about your daily exercise and activities, and will give you tips to improve your overall health. The analysis is geared towards teenagers, but they do have an additional tool for women over 19.
Articles and Facts
Citrus
Everything you have ever wanted to know about citrus, and then some. This site features facts about citrus, including history and nutrition facts. There are also recipes and educational activities that you can download.
Fruits and Veggies: More Matters
Sponsored by the Produce for Better Health Foundation, this informational website includes ideas for meal planning, including a database of tasty recipes and some activities for younger kids.
Food Charts
If you want to get down to the details of vitamins, minerals, and nutrition, this website is for you. It contains charts and tables that list the vitamin and mineral contents in hundreds of foods. Although it is packed with numbers and statistics, it is easy to use and navigate.
Food Fit
This website is catered toward older teens and adults, and is full of information about healthy eating, healthy cooking and fitness. Check out their Nutrition Dictionary, Recipe Revue, and the informative seasonal Food Guides that provide nutritional information, storage tips, and recipes for tons of different fruits and vegetables.
IFIC: International Food Information Council
International Food Information Council provides brochures, booklets, reviews, newsletters, and fact sheets on nutrition topics. The site includes information on sweeteners, pesticides, caffeine, allergies, and antioxidants. Much of the information is also offered in Spanish.
Kids Health
Although much of the content of this site is geared toward younger kids, there are some interesting articles to read here, such as Figuring Out Food Labels and Eating for Sports (also in Spanish: Alimentación para Los Deportes). They also have a recipe section that is worth checking out.
Teens Health
The "big sister" of Kids Health, this website contains lots of information and articles that are related to food and fitness. A few informational articles include: Becoming a Vegetarian; Organic and Other Environmentally Friendly Foods; Vitamins and Minerals; and Your Secrets to Healthy Snacking. Check out their Spanish page as well.