Eat the rainbow!

By now we all know the main principal of healthy eating is to have a good balance of the three macro nutrients, Carbohydrate, Protein and Fat.

But that's not the end of it. It is imperative to get as many vitamins and minerals into your diet as possible to make sure your body performs at its best.

Now, there are many ways you can try and do this but the easiest way to ensure you get plenty, is to eat the rainbow.

Obviously, I don't mean skittles, but if your plate is all one colour, it looks bland and boring. But if your plate is splashed with reds, greens, oranges etc not only does it look more interesting but it provides many more nutrients. Each one can really benefit the other too, for example, eating vitamin C with iron increases absorption so combining a nice lean piece of steak with a red pepper salad is a great way to maximise nutritional intake.

Phytonutrients are what give foods their colour and each colour has its own unique property. For example, orange foods, eg carrots and sweet potato have carotenoids which help with vision (yes granny was right, carrots help you see in the dark) and blue/purple foods like blueberries have anthocyanins which help to keep your heart healthy. Now, I won't go into every single colour but you get the idea.

Every fruit, vegetable and grain has its own unique property offering a whole range of benefits. For the purpose of this blog, let me give you one of my favourite summer salad recipes, with additional nutritional info:

Rainbow Salad

Rocket: Only 25 calories per 100g. Strong delicious taste which stands up to most food. Laced with vits&minerals including: Iron, Calcium, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6 and Magnesium.
Cucumber: 16 calories per 100g. High water percentage to help with hydration and feeling full. Source of Vitamins A, C and K, Magnesium, Potassium, Phosphorous and Manganese.
Yellow pepper: 27 calories per 100g. Excellent source of vitamin C. Also, Vitamin A, Calcium, Iron, Niacin, Magnesium, Vitamin B6, Folate, Potassium and Manganese.
Edamame: 122 calories per 100g. Great source of protein at 11g per 100g as well as high in vitamin and mineral content including, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, Vitamin K, Iron, Calcium, Magnesium, Folate, Manganese.
Feta: This would be the "fat" in the salad and also acts as a dressing due to it's tangy flavour. 14g of protein per 100g, good source of Calcium, Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin B6 and B12 and Riboflavin which helps activate other vitamins.
Tesco Pink Slaw - Red and white cabbage, red onion and carrot. Calories = 38 per half pack (70g).

Enjoy x