Foods You Should Eat Daily
By Sara Butler
If you want to focus on your health and wellness, then you need to focus on a healthy diet. What does it mean to eat healthy? The standard answer is to eat a diet full of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. But for those of you who need something a bit more specific, if you want to focus on your health through eating, then you can’t go wrong including the following foods in your diet every single day.
Spinach
Spinach is good for you! It’s an important source of omega-3 fatty acid and folate, which you need to help reduce your risk of stroke, heart disease, and osteoporosis. Folate also helps circulation, so you reduce your chances of issues with circulation as your grow older if you can ensure your diet has enough folate in it.
Spinach also can help to keep your eyes healthy with a dose of lutein to help fight against macular degeneration. You should try to include a cup of fresh spinach or one-half cup of cooked spinach per day in your diet. If spinach doesn’t do it for you or it’s not available, you can reach for romaine lettuce, kale, or bok choy instead.
Tomatoes
Red tomatoes are packed full of an antioxidant called lycopene and a diet rich in lycopene can help to reduce your risk of developing certain types of cancer. Another great thing about tomatoes is that processed, canned tomatoes are just as good for you as fresh ones – maybe even better. That's because it’s easier for your body to absorb lycopene from processed tomatoes.
If tomatoes aren’t your thing, then aim for papaya, red watermelon, guava, Japanese persimmon, or pink grapefruit in your diet.
Carrots
For the most part, yellow, red, and orange vegetables are packed full of important compounds called carotenoids. These fat-soluble compounds are associated with reduced rates of certain cancers and inflammatory conditions. Carrots just happen to be the most nutrient dense of these vegetables, so try to aim for one-half cup per day!
You can also add sweet potatoes, yellow bell peppers, mango, butternut squash, and pumpkin to your diet to get your daily carotenoids.
Blueberries
One of the best things about blueberries is how full of antioxidants they are. Antioxidants help to protect you from diabetes, cancers, and memory problems as you age. They’re also rich in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and fiber. Try one cup of fresh blueberries every morning to help boost your brain!
If blueberries aren’t on hand, then try prunes, purple grapes, strawberries or raisins.
These foods taste great, so there's no reason not to include them in your diet every day!
To learn more about your health and wellness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Greenwood Village, Colo.