Eat fruits and vegetables

So when I got up this morning and was eating my oat meal, I was happy to hear one great news. Eating fruits and vegetables is good. While I eat almost everything including meat when I have to, I am a vegetarian at heart. I think in our family nine out of ten meals are vegetarian meals. According to a new study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute increased fruit and vegetable consumption is associated with a decreased risk of cardiovascular diseases.

The Journal is reporting that eating five or more servings of fruits and vegetables daily has been recommended to reduce a person's risk of cardiovascular disease. In the analysis of different groups of fruits and vegetables, consumption of green leafy vegetables showed the strongest inverse association with both cardiovascular disease and major chronic disease—that is, cancer and cardiovascular disease combined.

How to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables in your diet?

• Eat a fruit as a snack. When I go to work, apart from lunch box (which of course, has plenty of vegetables), I also bring a snack to eat when I get somewhat hungry around 3 PM.
• No matter what the menu for a meal is, always include at least one vegetable. If my wife cannot find anything, she will simply boil some broccoli or cauliflower or green beans.
• It is wrong to think that you can not live on a vegetarian diet. Make some vegetarian friends (a lot of Hindus and Buddhists eat only vegetables and have great recipes to share).
• Mix vegetables in your meat dish. For example, add some squash or mushroom or broccoli to your chicken or shrimp dish. Try similar other combinations and you will discover a host of new dishes.

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Photo courtesy: Wouter de Bie