Bryant Stamford| Special to Courier Journal
A quick critique of the American diet reveals glaring excesses and deficiencies. We consume way too much sugar, saturated fat, and salt. Sugar stiffens the arteries, saturated fat contributes to clogging the arteries, and salt can raise blood pressure.
Put these three together and its easy to see whyyear in and year out, heart disease is by far the number one killer in the U.S.
But what about COVID-19? COVID sent us into a panic last year and got all the attention, even though heart disease accounted for twice as many deaths. Did you hear anything on the news about heart disease? Of course not. Ho-hum, no mention of the nearly 2,000 daily deaths from heart disease, and zero encouragement to stem the tide by eating right, managing your weight and exercising.
And, even more ironic is the fact that folks at high risk for heart disease were much more likely to die from COVID-19.
Obviously, we consume too much bad stuff and not nearly enough good stuff. Topping the list of good stuff is a variety of fruits and vegetables. According to nutrition experts, we need at least five servings of fruits and vegetables every day. Larger folks need more servings, up to 13 per day. Unfortunately, the typical American consumes less than half the servings of fruits and vegetables we need, and only 14%meet the daily requirement.
You may like: More than 1/3 of Americans are obese. Here's why many of us can't break bad eating habits
What is a serving? This gets complicated quickly when it comes to fruits and vegetables, and its not easy to quantify what five servings look like. A serving can be in ounces, cups, or handfuls (palm size), plus a consideration is whether its raw or cooked. These complications muddy the water when it comes to encouraging folks to add fruits and vegetables to their diet.
So how can we simplify? Here is what I do.
Let me be honest and tell you that Im not one to sit around and eat apples and oranges, and Ive never been a big fan of vegetables. Back in my early years when I mistakenly thought tons of exercise was the antidote for all bad lifestyle habits, including my horrible diet, I never thought about fruits and vegetables. The closest I came was banana splits and French fries. Sound familiar?
Anyway, when I had my Road to Damascus conversion and became a vegetarian around the age of 35, a change that no doubt saved my life, I had to do something to up my intake of fruits and vegetables.
Knowing that adding fruits and vegetables to my diet in the proportions I needed would be a huge challenge, I decided to start making blends, and I have continued the practice ever since. My blend emphasizes fruits and especially vegetables, and if possible, all fresh and organic. I begin with a mixture of healthy leafy green vegetables (fresh spinach, kale, etc.) as a priority (three large, overflowing handfuls), and carrots. Next is a handful of blueberries, then either a large apple and orange, or two smaller ones of each, and finally a handful of raw walnuts. Next, I add three scoops of plant-based high-protein powder chocolate for flavor.
You may like: From resistance training to bands, here are 3 exercises to fight aching joints as you age
This fills the blender nearly to the top, then I add a mixture of soy milk and water to make two quarts that I usually split over two days. I supplement my blend with dinner vegetables broccoli, asparagus, sweet potatoes, and raw tomatoes. Another option is my wifes vegetarian cooking, like delicious chili loaded with various types of beans and vegetables.
To make this above concoction requires a high-powered blender. In my case, I use a Vitamix, but there are other options. If you use a regular blender, you wont be happy with the results too clumpy.
A word of caution. Since this blend is jam-packed with nutrients, sip it slowly. You can take it to work in a thermos bottle and it makes a great lunch that is both convenient and healthy.
When I mentioned this blend to a friend who should be more attentive to his health, he told me, Yeah, I get all the healthy stuff I need from the smoothies I drink. Thats like saying, I practice great dental hygiene by brushing my teeth once a week.
A smoothie, if its made well, covers a tiny portion of your daily needs for fruit, and is only a fraction as potent as the blend described above.
When it comes to fruits and vegetables, the question pops up is frozen or canned as good as fresh?
Well, that depends.
No doubt, the best option would be picking fresh produce right out of your garden and eating it, but thats not realistic. The next best would seem to be fresh produce at the grocery store.
Or, is it?
Unfortunately, it may not be all that fresh, and the longer it goes before eating, the more nutrients it loses. For example, if the produce was picked some time ago (before ripening and fully developing vitamins and minerals), put on a truck, shipped a long distance, then sitting out on display for who knows how long, it may be considered fresh, but its far from it.
You may like: The case against soda: how diet soda can make you gain weight and increase stroke risk
Is frozen better? Again, that depends. Frozen produce has the advantage of being harvested when ripe and processed within hours. But before freezing, the produce is blanched (cooked quickly in boiling water) to slow or stop enzymes that can cause a loss of flavor, color or texture, but it also can reduce nutrient content.
And as to canning, it requires a lot more processing than frozen, which reduces nutritional value more, plus during canning, sugar and salt often are added, an aspect best avoided if possible (read food labels).
Regardless of the above concerns, you are a whole lot better off eating fruits and vegetables, regardless of fresh, frozen or canned. You also can add any of them to your blend, making it easier and more convenient.
The bottom line is, as you delete bad items from your diet, you will need replacements, and fruits and vegetables should be at the top of your list.
Reach Bryant Stamford, a professor of kinesiology and integrative physiology at Hanover College, at stamford@hanover.edu.
Read more:
Ready to get healthy? 3 easy ways to add fresh fruits and veggies to your diet - Courier Journal
