Maintaining health

Keep in mind that the benefits are great.

Therefore, the addition of vegetables and fruits in the menu whether raw, cooked, or as a beverage, will not only help you meet the daily nutritional requirements of the micronutrients, but also protect the immune system, manage blood pressure levels, manage blood sugar (eat at least two fruits per day, and more vegetables such as lettuce, cucumber, melongene, spinach), lower cholesterol levels, promote regular bowel function, decreases potential risk for chronic diseases and conditions such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, and maintain your nutritional status.

From this you can conclude that vegetables and fruits are nutritious, as well as low in calories, and will provide additional health benefits. When planning meals, the meal manager should select foods from all food groups to have balanced meals.

Choose veggies, the nutritional content For today’s article the focus is on yellow and orange vegetables, these include carrots, pumpkin, butternut squash, yellow peppers, corn, sweet potatoes, yellow potatoes, yellow tomatoes, yellow summer squash. All of which belong to the vegetable group, except for sweet potatoes and yellow potatoes that are staples, belonging to the staples food group. Moreover, besides vitamins, minerals, and water, they also contain carotenoids (a phytochemical). Some examples of carotenoids include beta-carotene, lutein, lycopene, zeaxanthin, _-cryptoxanthin, etc.

Carotenoids acts as antioxidants, and decrease one’s potential risk for certain types of cancers and eye disease (Johnson, 2002).

Phytochemicals and dietary fibre Phytochemicals (also referred to as phytonutrients) can be described as the non-nutritive compounds in plant foods which exist naturally, and are biologically active. Such compounds act as a natural defence in the plants, and studies indicate that adding fruits, vegetables, whole grains, peas and beans, nuts and seeds to the diet may probably help to prevent or reduce one’s risk for heart disease, cancer, and other disease states.

As the name implies “phytochemicals” will fight for you, simply meaning that they will help to protect you and lower your risk for diseases; example, they act as either blocking or suppressing agents to decrease the risk for cancer. Moreover, blocking agents usually prevent active carcinogen or tumour promoter from reaching the target tissue; whereas, suppressing agents may probably arrest carcinogenesis by acting on the cellular level and prevent expression of cells previously exposed to cancer causing agents (Wattenberg, 1997). Examples of some phytochemicals are lycopene, anthocyanins, terpenes, monoterpenes, carotenoids, polyphenols, flavonoids, lutein, zeaxanthin, indoles, diallyl sulphides, and lignans (Mahan &Escott-Stump, 2000, 2008).

Dietary fibre also referred to as roughage cannot be digested, but it adds bulk to the diet and provides a feeling of fullness. Other significant health benefits include, but may not be limited to alleviating constipation, management of blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and weight management (Whitney and Rady Rolfes, 2010).

Portion size Eat more vegetables, buy local produce; they can be added to each meal or included as snacks; simply, make half your plate vegetables.

With each meal you can have two servings of vegetables. A serving consist of one pot spoon of cooked vegetables or one small bowl of raw veggies e.g. salad.

Claudette Mitchell, PhD, RD – University of the Southern Caribbean, School of Science, Technology, and Allied Health

Sweet Potato Salad

2 potatoes

1 sweet potato

4 eggs

2 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon prepared mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 30 minutes. Drain, cool, peel and chop.

Place eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil. Cover, remove from heat, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water; cool, peel and chop. Combine the potatoes, eggs, celery and onion. Whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, salt and pepper. Add to potato mixture, toss well to coat. Refrigerate and serve chilled.

Stuffed Bell Peppers

1 pound lean ground beef or chicken

4 mushrooms, chopped

1? cups frozen corn

2 ribs of celery, chopped thinly

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 14.5 ounce cans petite diced tomatoes with juice

2 tbsp concentrated tomato paste

2 tbsp basil

1 tbsp oregano

? tsp red pepper flakes salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1? cups cooked long grain rice

? cup chopped Italian parsley

6 yellow bell peppers

1 cup shredded cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Brown the ground meat in a large fry pan over medium high heat for 5 minutes or until cooked almost through. Add the mushrooms, corn kernels, chopped celery, onion and garlic and cook until vegetables are softened.

Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, oregano and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and ground pepper to taste and cook for 15-20 minutes. Stir in cooked rice and chopped parsley and cook for another 5 minutes or until the rice is warmed through.

Meanwhile, cut off the tops of the peppers and spoon out the ribs and seeds, then rinse. Lightly sprinkle the inside of the peppers with salt and place in a microwave safe dish with ? cup water. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave for 5 minutes or until they start to soften.

Transfer to a 3 quart baking dish and fill the peppers with the hot meat and rice mixture. Sprinkle the tops with cheese and bake for 20 minutes or until peppers are tender and cheese is browned.

Serve hot.