The benefits of taking vegetables and friuts as part of your dietry plan and different ways to consume them. Watch videos at the bottom page

Fruits and Vegetables are highly important for the well-being of our health.  Asides the enjoyment we derive from the natural sweetness of fruits, there are other benefits we also derive from them. Below are some of the benefits.

According to a report published by Harvard University: Eating plenty of vegetables and fruits can help avoid heart disease and stroke, control blood pressure, prevent some types of cancer, avoid a painful intestinal ailment called diverticulitis, and guard against cataract and macular degeneration, two common causes of vision loss.

Vegetables, Fruits, and Cardiovascular Disease

 

There is compelling evidence that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables can lower the risk of heart disease and stroke.
The higher the average daily intake of fruits and vegetables, the lower the chances of developing cardiovascular disease.  Although all fruits and vegetables likely contribute to this benefit, green leafy vegetables such as lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, and mustard greens; cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, and kale; and citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruit (and their juices) make important contributions.

Vegetables, Fruits, and Blood Pressure

High blood pressure is a primary risk factor for heart disease and stroke. As such, it’s a condition that is important to control.  Fruits and Vegetable diet can be a very effective tool for lowering blood pressure.

Vegetables, Fruits, and Cancer

Some types of fruits and vegetables may protect against certain cancers. A massive report by the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research suggests that non-starchy vegetables—such as lettuce and other leafy greens, broccoli, bok choy, cabbage, as well as garlic, onions, and the like—and fruits “probably” protect against several types of cancers, including those of the mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, and stomach; fruit probably also protects against lung cancer.
Specific components of fruits and vegetables may also be protective against cancer. For example, a line of research stemming from a finding from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study suggests that tomatoes 

may help protect men against prostate cancer, especially aggressive forms of it. One of the pigments that give tomatoes their red hue—lycopene—could be involved in this protective effect. Although several studies other than the Health Professionals study have also demonstrated a link between tomatoes or lycopene and prostate cancer. Studies suggest that increased consumption of tomato-based products (especially cooked tomato products) and other lycopene-containing foods may reduce the occurrence of prostate cancer. Lycopene is one of several carotenoids (compounds that the body can turn into vitamin A) found in brightly colored fruits and vegetables, and research suggests that foods containing carotenoids may protect against lung, mouth, and throat cancer.

Vegetables, Fruits, and Gastrointestinal Health

 One of the wonderful components of fruits and vegetables is their indigestible fiber. As fiber passes through the digestive system, it sops up water like a sponge and expands. This can calm the irritable bowel and, by triggering regular bowel movements, can relieve or prevent constipation.The bulking and softening action of insoluble fiber also decreases pressure inside the intestinal tract and so may help prevent diverticulosis (the development of tiny, easily irritated pouches inside the colon) and diverticulitis (the often painful inflammation of these pouches).

 

Vegetables, Fruits, and Vision

 Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables also keeps your eyes in good shape. The vitamin A in carrots aids night vision. 

Other fruits and vegetables help prevent two common aging-related eye diseases—cataract and macular degeneration—which is common among adults over age 65. Cataract is the gradual clouding of the eye’s lens, a disk of protein that focuses light on the light-sensitive retina. Macular degeneration is caused by cumulative damage to the macula, the center of the retina. It starts as a blurred spot in the center of what you see. As the degeneration spreads, vision shrinks.

 Free radicals generated by sunlight, cigarette smoke, air pollution, infection, and metabolism cause much of this damage.

 Dark green leafy vegetables—such as spinach and kale—contain two pigments, lutein and zeaxanthin, that accumulate in the eye; these pigments are found in other brightly colored fruits and vegetables as well, including corn, squash, kiwi, and grapes. These two pigments appear to be able to snuff out free radicals before they can harm the eye’s sensitive tissues.

 

The Bottom line; Recommendations for Vegetable and Fruit Intake

 Vegetables and fruits are clearly an important part of a good diet. In general, a diet rich in fruits and vegetables appears to reduce the chances of developing cataract. Lutein and zeaxanthin, in particular, seem protective against cataract.  Almost everyone can benefit from eating more of them, but variety is as important as quantity. No single fruit or vegetable provides all of the nutrients you need to be healthy.

 Try these tips to fit more fruits and vegetables into your day:

1] Replace snacks with fruits

2] Take fruits and veg during lunch break

3] Take them in form of smoothie 'blend up your veg and fruit

Personally  i consume my fruits and vegetables by making it inform of smoothie after blending i pour it into 1 little see through plastic bottle and refrigerate. 1 little of smoothies usually last me up to three days when i drink one big cup per day. By doing this you are sure of not missing out in your vegetable and fruit daily/weekly intake.

 Below is a video on how i take my fruits and vegetables in form of smoothie;