Veggies and Fruits ListsOptimize Your Health
with micro-nutrients,
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(2009 Feb blog post)
! Note !
Text or web-links or images may be added
(or changed) --- if/when I re-visit this page.
INTRODUCTION: In my 50's, I developed health problems (and a moderate over-weight problem) due to improper eating. I have documented those problems AND their solution in a blog post titled I was a SugarS Guinea Pig (subtitle: An Inadvertent Medical Experiment). I found the solution to most of my problems, after trying all sorts of supplements (vitamin, mineral, and other). I FINALLY found that I actually had to REMOVE a critical type of ingredient in my diet, NOT ADD something to my diet. I essentially went on a loose version of the low-sugarS Atkins diet. It is actually a Mother Nature's well-enhanced sugars diet in place of an added-refined-sugars diet. I know of at least one person, in my circle of friends, who has a serious over-weight problem (which is an indicator of serious underlying problems, such as high-triglycerides --- fatty substances --- in the blood stream). These problems will probably lead to a death about 10 to 30 years before that should happen. A 'pre-mature' death can be avoided if the person(s) would change their eating habits --- in particular, cut back on added-refined-sugarS drink and food products. Thus, a lot of healthy, enjoyable years can be added to their lives --- in place of experiencing a long, slow, agony-filled decline. It seems there are two responses that I frequently encounter, if I mention cutting way back on sugarS in one's eating habits, and if I mention the name Atkins in the conversation.
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Misinformation On the topic of the misinformation that has been promoted by essentially every low-carb or low-fat diet competing with the Atkins diet, I have documented how the Atkins diet is based on a couple of papers published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1963. You can see those papers via my blog post titled Atkins Misrepresented. In answer to the charge that "there's nothing tasty to eat" if one cuts sugary products out of one's diet, I try to point out what I found out. Namely, when you cut "added sugarS" products out of your diet, a lot of "traditional" foods (that is, foods that man has been eating since way, way before the time of the Egyptian pyramids) are quite tasty, especially in various combinations. A Reminder List : There is a veritable plethora of foods available among the vegetables and fruits that grace this planet. Here is a list of ones common in the U.S.A. |
Vegetables | Fruits |
---|---|
artichokes | apple |
asparagus | apricot |
avocado (*) | |
beets | |
beans (green, lima, kidney, garbanzo, ...) | banana (actually, quite a few varieties) |
bean sprouts | berries (blue, black, rasp, straw) |
brussel sprouts | |
broccoli | |
cabbage (many varieties) | cantaloupe |
carrots | cherries |
cauliflower | |
celery | |
collard greens | |
corn | |
cucumbers | |
eggplant | figs |
garlic | grapefruit |
grapes | |
honeydew melon |
kale | kiwi |
leeks | lemon, lime |
lettuce (many varieties) | |
mushrooms | mango |
nectarine | |
okra | olives (black, green) (*) |
onions | orange |
parsnips | papaya |
peas | peach |
peppers | pear |
potatoes | pineapple |
pumpkin | plum |
pomegranate | |
radish | raisins (see grapes) |
snow peas | |
spinach | |
squash | |
sweet potatoes | |
tomatoes | tangerines |
turnips (and turnip greens) | |
zucchini | watermelon |
(*) Avocadoes and olives are technically classified as fruits. Their seed is somewhat like peach and cherry, respectively --- but avocado and olive are very 'oily'. One usually thinks of fruits as 'juicy' rather than 'oily'. In any case, those oils are very useful as toppings on vegetables. The oils can make rather boring-tasting vegetables and salads quite a treat --- as can vinegar, which is made from items in this list, like apples. So to those who say they can't find anything to eat, I say use a list like this as a reminder list. Over 70 items are referenced in this list. And this is just a partial list. I have devised a Food (or Diet) Slot Machine. Just click on the veggie, or fruit, or nuts-and-seeds wheels to generate a combo to try. Explore the thousands of possibilities. Among vegetables, there are other less popular items that are not listed here --- such as 'bok choi', 'swiss chard', and 'yams'. And there are many varieties of beans, cabbage, greens, lettuce, mushroom, potato, and squash --- many more than are mentioned here. Among fruits, there are new fruit hybrids on the market such as 'apple pears' and 'tangelos'. So, like the vegetables, the list of fruits could go on and on --- at least double the size here. And we haven't even mentioned nuts and seeds, in their great variety, here. So the person who eliminates junk, manufactured, sugarS-added foods from his/her diet has plenty to choose from. I know it does not seem that way at first. When I first dropped sugarS-added foods and drinks from my diet, I wasn't sure what I would find as replacements. But you rapidly find good replacements. As a replacement for sugary drinks, there is water. I have 5-gallon bottles of distilled water in my kitchen at home, in a cooler-dispenser. So I have cool water at hand. And, when out in restaurants, I ask for a lemon slice in water --- to make palatable the poor, inconsistent taste of tap water. As a replacement for added-sugarS desserts, I typically use frozen blueberries (much less expensive than fresh) thawed in the microwave --- with milk or bananas or nuts-and-seeds mixed in. |
Substitutions and snacks As a replacement for sugary rolls and sugary cereals for breakfast, I use low-sugar cereal, mixed with a no-sugar cereal (usually less than 7 grams of sugarS per 40 gram serving --- less than 15% sugars), with a banana or raisins to provide micro-nutrient-rich sugarS, where the micro-nutrients and the sugarS are mixed safely and naturally by Mother Nature. And, occasionally, I have eggs --- without sweet rolls, jams, and jellies. It is surprising how good Mother-Nature-manufactured foods taste after a few weeks without refined-sugarS products in your diet.
For snacks, regularly peel and slice carrots and keep a bucket or two in the refrigerator. When you need a snack while watching TV, spread out the carrot pieces on a tray and put some vinegar potato chips in a bowl. With each vinegar chip, eat a carrot chunk. The combination of vinegar and carrot is a sweet-and-sour taste treat --- complete with healthy fiber, energy-giving starch (which are long-chains of MotherNature-mixed sugars), and micro-nutrients. Or dip the carrot pieces in a vinegar-and-oil dressing. Use your imagination. Treat your palate to the tastes you love. From the many items in the list above, you can find combinations that really please you --- AND you will feel good later, because your body will feel better. You will actually feel how beneficial these foods are --- unlike the feeling after drinking 20 ounces of coke, or eating a super-sugary cookie or piece of cake or sweet roll. Throw in some regular exercise, and you are on your way to optimum health. |
More diet-and-nutrition links Many more links to informative diet sites --- including before-and-after photo sites --- are at this web site, on the Diet Links page. And for information on the macro-nutrients (proteins, carbohydrates, fats) and micro-nutrients of a huge variety of fruits and vegetables, check out these external web sites :
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For further information : In case I do not return to update this page, here are some keyword WEB SEARCHES that you can use to provide updates. |
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Page was created 2009 Feb 15.
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