Did you know that Americans are eating much less vegetables than what's recommended for our diet? This is especially true with our nation's youth!
My goal for today's blog is to try to close this gap and educate everyone on eating more healthy, well-balanced meals.
My goal for today's blog is to try to close this gap and educate everyone on eating more healthy, well-balanced meals.
The great thing about vegetables is they are filling, nutritious and low calorie! Vegetables are an important source of fiber, nutrients, and vitamins. It's important to have at least 2-3 servings of vegetables every day. If you incorporate a side of vegetables with every meal, you can easily meet this target.
DATA SOURCES:
What We Eat in America, NHANES 2007-2010 for average intakes by age-sex group. Healthy U.S.-Style Food Patterns, which vary based on age, sex, and activity level, for recommended intake ranges.
Tomatoes and potatoes are the most popular vegetables in our American diet. According to the article "about 60 percent of all vegetables are eaten as a separate food item, about 30 percent as part of a mixed dish, and the remaining 10 percent as part of snack foods, condiments, and gravies. Vegetables are part of many types of mixed dishes, from burgers, sandwiches, and tacos to pizza, meat stews, pasta dishes, grain-based casseroles, and soups."
1. Make sure you have a side of vegetables with each meal
With more than 10000+ vegetables out there, there are so many
options to make side dishes exciting. Be creative. Write down recipes or ingredients from tv shows or blogs. If you loved a salad from a restaurant- note down its ingredients and try to make it at home to suit your taste buds.
2. Make an entree with vegetables 2-3 times weekly
Vegetable entrees are just as good, and sometimes just as nutritious as meat entrees! This will also allow you to learn how vegetables can be made as the star of any dish with spices, herbs and other seasonings.
3. Find good vegetarian recipes
Certain cultures have many interesting recipes with vegetables, especially Asian and Indian cuisines.
4. Start drinking smoothies made from fresh vegetables with ice, water or low-fat yogurt as the base
5. Always keep packages of frozen vegetables in the freezer so they are on hand at all times
This is so cheap and easy! Some frozen veggies even come in steam packs where you microwave the bag for 3 minutes, add some salt, pepper, seasoning and you are good to go! I always have bags of mixed vegetables, string beans and edamame in the freezer because these taste just as crisp as the fresh variety.
6. Always keep cans of beans, lentils, etc. in the cupboard
7. Use vegetables as snacks
I cut up pieces of carrots, celery, peppers, etc. and put them into plastic tupperware so they are easily seen and accessible. Choose to give your kids cut up vegetables and fruits as a snack rather than cookies, sweets, juice, candy, fruit snacks, etc.
8. Buy a blender or food processor
This allows you to enjoy smoothies, vegetable sauces, and certain soups.
9. Choose to steam, bake, or roast your vegetables when you can
Preparing vegetables in the above ways keeps your dish healthy. Avoid deep frying vegetables, breading them, or cooking with butter -- since this adds calories and fat, making the dish less nutritious!
Also you can follow me on Instagram for some delicious and quick vegetable dish ideas at at Live.Laugh.Love.Be_healthy!
Do you have any health tips to add?? How about tips to make your children eat more vegetables?
Please feel free to ask any questions! Email me at DoctorDeenaMD@gmail.com or ask/follow me on Twitter @Doctor_Deena or Instagram at Live.Laugh.Love.Be_healthy :)
**PLEASE REMEMBER IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS ABOUT YOUR HEALTH AND/OR BEFORE STARTING OR STOPPING ANY TREATMENT OR ACTING UPON INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE, YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR OWN PHYSICIAN OR HEALTH-CARE PROVIDER**
Based on Figure 2-3 from the NHANES database - you can see that that the intake of vegetables across all age groups is below recommendations, and is lowest among boys ages 9 to 13 years and girls ages 14 to 18 years.
DATA SOURCES:
What We Eat in America, NHANES 2007-2010 for average intakes by age-sex group. Healthy U.S.-Style Food Patterns, which vary based on age, sex, and activity level, for recommended intake ranges.
Tomatoes and potatoes are the most popular vegetables in our American diet. According to the article "about 60 percent of all vegetables are eaten as a separate food item, about 30 percent as part of a mixed dish, and the remaining 10 percent as part of snack foods, condiments, and gravies. Vegetables are part of many types of mixed dishes, from burgers, sandwiches, and tacos to pizza, meat stews, pasta dishes, grain-based casseroles, and soups."
Most vegetables can be divided into certain groups. I'll discuss each group separately - starting with the dark green vegetables. Dark green vegetables include:
- broccoli
- spinach
- swiss chard
- romaine lettuce
- collard greens
- bok choy
- kale
- turnip greens
- mustard greens
- green herbs (parsley, cilantro)
This group of vegetables is high in fiber, vitamins (A, C, K, D, folate), calcium, and iron.
The best way to eat these dark, green vegetables are as the base of a salad or wrap. I also enjoy adding spinach and broccoli into an omelet. Mustard greens,collard greens, swiss chard goes great in a soup or stew -- as they are very hearty vegetables! Any of the above vegetables can be added into a stir fry with meat or even tofu. I also make a great "green" smoothie with a blend of fat-free yogurt, kale, mint, cucumber, salt and pepper!
Bright colored vegetables like our red and orange colored vegetables are grouped together. These vegetables include:
- tomatoes
- carrots
- sweet potatoes
- red peppers
- orange peppers
- winter squash
- pumpkin
Red and orange vegetables are an excellent source of vitamins A and C. If you are interested in learning of the importance of vitamin A click here and of vitamin C click here. These vegetables are also high in antioxidants (like lycopene and anthocyanins) which help in cell repair & fighting off infection.
Red and orange vegetables are delicious raw, and make an excellent snack on-the-go. Sometimes I even eat them with a dipping sauce like a fat-free yogurt or hummus. These are my favorite vegetables to puree and use as the base for a soup. During the colder months -- I love to simply roast them in the oven with some fresh herbs and spice!
Another group of vegetables are the starchy vegetables. These include:
- potatoes
- corn
- green peas
- lima beans
- plaintains
- cassava
- taro
- yuca
Be aware of starchy vegetables since these should be limited for those watching their carbohydrate intake - as they are "starchy" and have a higher natural sugar content. Potatoes, plantains, taro, and/or yuca are perfect roasted, baked, or mashed. Peas and lima beans are an excellent addition to salads, soups, or pastas. Corn is so versatile and can be prepared in so many ways -- my favorite is as simple corn on the cob!
There are also vegetables that are grouped as "other" because there are no similar properties between them and these include:
Each of these vegetables has important nutrients and minerals that you should look up individually. For example, onions are great for flavor but not high in vitamins. In fact the vitamins in onions do not exceed more than 20% of our recommended daily intake. That's why onions are better to cook with as part of a meal, rather than to eat alone. Garlic is a great source for Vitamin C, B-6 and Manganese. It even has some calcium with 1 cup containing 25% of total daily value. Everything mentioned above can be prepared as a single entree with some interesting seasoning and spices.
- onions
- cucumbers
- celery
- cabbage
- mushrooms
- avocado
- cauliflower
- eggplant
- garlic
- sprouts
- olives
- asparagus
- avocado
Each of these vegetables has important nutrients and minerals that you should look up individually. For example, onions are great for flavor but not high in vitamins. In fact the vitamins in onions do not exceed more than 20% of our recommended daily intake. That's why onions are better to cook with as part of a meal, rather than to eat alone. Garlic is a great source for Vitamin C, B-6 and Manganese. It even has some calcium with 1 cup containing 25% of total daily value. Everything mentioned above can be prepared as a single entree with some interesting seasoning and spices.
I categorize legumes like beans, lentils, chickpeas, split peas, soybeans, etc. as proteins more than vegetables. Since their protein content is very high, they are often used as a meat alternative for vegetarians! I'll discuss this in a separate article.
Now that you have a sense of all the vegetables out there. Here are some tips to increase your overall intake of vegetables:
1. Make sure you have a side of vegetables with each meal
With more than 10000+ vegetables out there, there are so many
options to make side dishes exciting. Be creative. Write down recipes or ingredients from tv shows or blogs. If you loved a salad from a restaurant- note down its ingredients and try to make it at home to suit your taste buds.
2. Make an entree with vegetables 2-3 times weekly
Vegetable entrees are just as good, and sometimes just as nutritious as meat entrees! This will also allow you to learn how vegetables can be made as the star of any dish with spices, herbs and other seasonings.
3. Find good vegetarian recipes
Certain cultures have many interesting recipes with vegetables, especially Asian and Indian cuisines.
4. Start drinking smoothies made from fresh vegetables with ice, water or low-fat yogurt as the base
5. Always keep packages of frozen vegetables in the freezer so they are on hand at all times
This is so cheap and easy! Some frozen veggies even come in steam packs where you microwave the bag for 3 minutes, add some salt, pepper, seasoning and you are good to go! I always have bags of mixed vegetables, string beans and edamame in the freezer because these taste just as crisp as the fresh variety.
6. Always keep cans of beans, lentils, etc. in the cupboard
7. Use vegetables as snacks
I cut up pieces of carrots, celery, peppers, etc. and put them into plastic tupperware so they are easily seen and accessible. Choose to give your kids cut up vegetables and fruits as a snack rather than cookies, sweets, juice, candy, fruit snacks, etc.
8. Buy a blender or food processor
This allows you to enjoy smoothies, vegetable sauces, and certain soups.
9. Choose to steam, bake, or roast your vegetables when you can
Preparing vegetables in the above ways keeps your dish healthy. Avoid deep frying vegetables, breading them, or cooking with butter -- since this adds calories and fat, making the dish less nutritious!
Also you can follow me on Instagram for some delicious and quick vegetable dish ideas at at Live.Laugh.Love.Be_healthy!
Do you have any health tips to add?? How about tips to make your children eat more vegetables?
**PLEASE REMEMBER IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS ABOUT YOUR HEALTH AND/OR BEFORE STARTING OR STOPPING ANY TREATMENT OR ACTING UPON INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE, YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR OWN PHYSICIAN OR HEALTH-CARE PROVIDER**
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