Add More Fruits to Your Everyday Meals With Five-A-Day Rule - Avocado As a Healthy Fruit Choice

What is the best way to make your diet healthier but keep it flavorful? Incorporate fruits in your everyday meals. This is the reason behind five-a-day rule. In this article, I will provide a delicious way to add a fruit in your everyday meals. Furthermore, let this information reveal why avocado is one of the healthiest choices for you.

To meet your daily requirement of nutrients, phytonutrients, and antioxidants, the five-a-day rule states that you need to eat 5 to 9 servings of vegetables and fruits. And because not everybody eats vegetables, fruits are the best way to meet these requirements.

One of the favorites among health experts is the nature's butter or avocado. Although they contain 30 percent fat, this is monounsaturated fat or the good fat. This type of fat can help reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer. This alone is a good motivation to include it in your everyday meals.

Per half a fruit, avocados contain only 138 calories. This is quite surprising for a fatty fruit. It also contains beta-carotene, a nutrient that can be converted to vitamin A, protein, vitamins C and E, and vitamin B-complex particularly thiamine and riboflavin.

To enjoy avocados, you can have the well-known dish guacamole. With one ripe avocado, mash it with 5 teaspoon salsa, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, and a dash of salt. Mash it until the mixture is smooth. Add diced ripe tomatoes. This is great as an ingredient in taco or a dip for tortilla chips.

Avocado may be seasonal, so enjoy it when it is abundant during its peak season. You can also include other fruits in your everyday meals like berries like raspberries and blueberries, apples, mangoes, and melons.

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Apple - Good Fruit for Healthy People

Apple is a very good fruit. It is healthy and it is great food for people, who want to stay in shape or lose weight. "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." - It is very famous phrase and it is truth. Apples have a lot of vitamins and minerals. Just look at the table, it is amazing!

Energy 218 kJ (52 kcal)

Carbohydrates 13.81 g

Sugars 10.39 g

Dietary fiber 2.4 g

Fat 0.17 g

Protein 0.26 g

Water 85.56 g

Vitamin A equiv. 3 μg (0%)

Thiamine (Vit. B1) 0.017 mg (1%)

Riboflavin (Vit. B2) 0.026 mg (2%)

Niacin (Vit. B3) 0.091 mg (1%)

Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.061 mg (1%)

Vitamin B6 0.041 mg (3%)

Folate (Vit. B9) 3 μg (1%)

Vitamin C 4.6 mg (8%)

Calcium 6 mg (1%)

Iron 0.12 mg (1%)

Magnesium 5 mg (1%)

Phosphorus 11 mg (2%)

Potassium 107 mg (2%)

Zinc 0.04 mg (0%)

Research suggests that apples may reduce the risk of colon cancer, prostate cancer and lung cancer. Compared to many other fruits and vegetables, apples contain relatively low amounts of vitamin C, but are a rich source of other antioxidant compounds. The fiber content, while less than in most other fruits, helps regulate bowel movements and may thus reduce the risk of colon cancer. They may also help with heart disease, weight loss, and controlling cholesterol, as they do not have any cholesterol, have fiber, which reduces cholesterol by preventing re-absorption, and (like most fruits and vegetables) are bulky for their caloric content.

We recommend you eat apples every day or you can drink apple juice.

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The Health Benefits of Eating Fruit

Besides being very delicious there are a number of health benefits to be gained from eating fruit. There are many people that avoid eating foods that are considered to be healthy. Oftentimes, sometimes people feel as if they cannot eat certain foods simply because they are healthy and they have presumed that they won't like them. Such is the case with fruit. Even though fruit is available in a variety of selections for even the pickiest of eaters, there are those naysayers that prefer not to consume fruit at all. People should note that there are so many benefits that are derived from eating fruit. Not only is fruit delicious and full of vitamins and minerals it is also naturally low in fat making it an excellent snacking choice. Anyone that is interested in improving the quality of their healthy should consider consuming more fruit on a regular basis.

One of the biggest benefits that can be gained from eating fruit regularly is a reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is a condition that can be caused by a number of factors. However, the consumption of sweets is one of the more prominent factors. Consuming too many sugary sweet items such as candies and pastries can lead to blood sugar irregularities. A great way to combat sweet tooth cravings is with fruit. Fruit is a naturally sweet option for anyone that would like to eliminate the unhealthy sweet snacks and replace them with nutritious healthy fruit. By eating more fruit as opposed to unhealthy sweet snacks people are more likely to lower their risk of diabetes.

Another benefit of eating fruit is weight management. People that eat fruit are more likely to lose weight and maintain their weight loss as opposed to other individuals. This is because fruit is naturally low in fat. Eating a couple of pieces of fruit will provide energy to keep the body functioning properly and supplies necessary vitamins, minerals and nutrients. Eating more fruit also helps to fill the stomach which results in eating less food and contributes to weight loss. Furthermore, fruit is naturally low in sodium which means that individuals are less likely to gain water weight as a result of eating fruit. This helps people to maintain the appearance of weight loss. There are a variety of different fruits that people can consume in order to take the edge off their hunger and maintain their weight loss.

A final health benefit of eating fruit is that fruit is full of antioxidants. Nearly everyone is aware of the many health benefits of antioxidants. Antioxidants are known to keep free radicals from attacking the healthy cells of the body. When free radicals attack the healthy cells of the body this can lead to a number of health problems such as cancer. The antioxidants that are found in fruit are can also help slow the aging process. Thus, eating at least five servings of fruit each day will supply the body with antioxidants which can aid in reducing the deterioration of the body and the development of disease.

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5 Healthy and Simple Ways to Make Fruit Salad Recipes

Salads made of fruit are undoubtedly the most delicious that can be prepared. In addition to being delightful in both appearance and flavor, they afford another means of introducing fruit into the diet. As fruit is decidedly beneficial for all persons with a normal digestion, every opportunity to include it in the diet should be grasped. Some fruit salads are comparatively bland in flavor while others are much more acid, but the mild ones are neither so appetizing nor so beneficial as those which are somewhat tart.

Here are 5 types of simple to prepare healthy fruit salads to start off in a week.

1) Mixed Fruit Salad

The combination of fruits given in the accompanying recipe makes a very good salad, but it need not be adhered to strictly. If one or more of the fruits is not in supply, it may be omitted and some other used. In case canned pineapple is used for the salad, the juice from the fruit may be utilized in making a fruit salad dressing.

1 grapefruit

2 oranges

1 banana

2 apples

2 slices pineapple

Salad dressing

Lettuce

Prepare the grapefruit and oranges according to the directions previously given. Slice the banana crosswise into 1/4-inch slices and cut each slice into four sections. Dice the apples and cut the pineapple in narrow wedge-shaped pieces. Mix the fruit just before serving. Add the salad dressing, which may be fruit-salad dressing, French dressing, or some other desirable salad dressing, by mixing it with the fruit or merely pouring it over the top. Serve on salad plates garnished with lettuce leaves. Place a maraschino cherry on top and this is sufficient to serve for six person.

2) Fruit and Nut Salad

Slice two bananas, two oranges and mix them with one-half cup of English walnuts and the juice of one-half lemon with French dressing. Serve on lettuce leaves.

3) Hungarian Fruit Salad

Mix together equal parts of banana, orange, pineapple, grapefruit and one-half cup of chopped nuts. Marinate with French dressing. Fill apple or orange skins with mixture. Arrange on a bed of watercress or lettuce leaves. Sprinkle with paprika.

4) Russian Fruit Salad

Peel and pit some peaches, cut in slices and add as much sliced pineapple, some apricots, strawberries

and raspberries, put these in a dish. Prepare a syrup of juice of two lemons, two oranges, one cup of water and one pound sugar, a half teaspoon of powdered cinnamon, grated rind of lemon, add one cup red wine and a half glass of rum. Boil this syrup for five minutes, then pour over the fruit, tossing the fruit from time to time until cool. Place on ice and serve cold.

5) Summer Mix Fruit Salad

Any agreeable combination of fruits which may be obtained during the same season will be suitable for summer mix salad. The combination given in the accompanying recipe includes strawberries, pineapple, and cherries. However, pineapple and cherries may be used alone, or strawberries and pineapple may be used without the cherries, or red raspberries may be used to garnish such a salad.

3/4 c. strawberries, cut into halves

3/4 c. pineapple, cut into dice

3/4 c. sweet cherries, seeded

Lettuce

Fruit-salad dressing

Prepare the fruits just before serving. Put them together, place on salad plates garnished with lettuce, and serve with the fruit-salad dressing.

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Healthy Fruit Juice Checklist - How to Choose a Bottled Fruit Juice

Not every bottled, canned, or boxed fruit beverage is a healthy fruit juice. Here is a checklist for evaluating juices to get the most health for your money.

Look for the words "100% fruit juice" on the label. This exact wording means that the beverage contains only fruit juice, flavors, and additives. Other wordings without the term "100%," such as "orange juice drink" or "fruit juice cocktail," mean that as little as 1% of the beverage might be fruit juice: the rest will typically be corn syrup.

Avoid flavors and additives as much as possible. Read the ingredients list in the fine print to see the number and names of additives.

"Pulp" or "puree" in the ingredients list indicates extra fiber, taste, and nutrition from the crushed flesh of the fruit.

On the label, look for the words "not from concentrate." This means that the juice was bottled when it was pressed. In contrast, "from concentrate" means that the juice was first dehydrated and then later reconstituted by mixing with water. The additional processing of making the concentrate harms the quality of the juice.

Look for the words "USDA organic" for the extra taste and nutrition of organic fruit. Organic fruit is grown without synthetic pesticides, which can concentrate in the juice. "100% organic" indicates entirely organic ingredients; "organic" indicates 95% organic ingredients. "Made with organic ingredients" means that only some of the ingredients are organic. The word "natural" means nothing at all!

Make sure that you get the fruit that you think you are buying. The ingredients are listed in the order of volume: the largest ingredient first and the smallest last.

Look for juice made from high-antioxidant fruits. Antioxidants are healthful nutrients that help maintain the body against the ravages of age, metabolism, and toxins. Fortunately, some antioxidants in fruits survive the bottling process! High-antioxidant fruit juices include bilberry, blueberry, cherry, concord grape, cranberry, and pomegranate.

Low-quality juices and corn syrup waste your money; whereas the highest quality juices enhance your health. This checklist will help you get the most from your juice purchases.

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How To Properly Care For Your Fruit Trees To Keep Them Healthy

Because the main reason that fruit trees die is due to misunderstandings and common misconceptions, caring for a fruit tree not only requires responsibility, but also semi-extensive research.

Leaf/fruit/twig diseases may weaken the tree and reduce the overall fruit quality, but the tree usually survives these diseases. It is damage to the trunk, crown, and roots which generally causes the death of a fruit tree, and many of the reasons these damages would occur can be accommodated with a little bit of knowledge.

If the soil is not properly attended to, the roots will not develop and your plant will lack nutrition, which will result in poor fruit quality and give your tree a potential death sentence. Note your area, climate, and tree type, and explain these conditions to a nursery employee, and you will almost definitely receive a fertilizer which will nurse your tree into a long life, which will produce healthy fruits for years to come.

Healthy Branches

After the fertilizer is in use, your tree should begin to develop. Many people think things develop at the speed they are meant to, however, this is not always true: fruit trees sometimes begin to develop fruit before the branches are sturdy enough to support the weight. The result: snapping branches. The solution: putting boards under the branches to help support the weight, or tying the branches up to something higher up.

As your tree begins to grow, do not make the mistake that many people make, which is that it must need excessive amounts of water to continue to grow at a healthy rate. Why? Because it is not true: too much water can be worse than not enough! If you notice your tree is starting to wither, do not assume it is because it needs water. Rather, look online, or talk to a nursery employee, and go from there. If lack of water is not the problem, over-watering will only add to the real problem.

Branches

If you notice unhealthy branches or leaves in your tree, you should remove them. The reason: the tree is probably still sending nutrients to this sector, and therefore, taking away from the other, healthier branches. Chop off unhealthy looking branches at first signs of deterioration, so your plant can focus on the healthier parts and therefore continue to flourish.

As your tree begins to produce fruit, it also begins to open up an invitation for unwanted insects or disease, if you do not take care of your tree at this stage. You must pick the fruit from your tree (even ones you do not want), so it will not rot. Also, pick up fallen fruit from the ground.

The joy of watching your tree flourish into a healthy fruit-bearing asset will surely make you grateful for all the time, research, and care you put into helping it past its vulnerable stages.

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5 Healthy Fruits That You Will Love to Eat

As everyone knows, fruits and vegetables are great sources of important nutrients. Of course, most fruits are super-tasty, in addition to being healthy. Here are 5 fruits that are nutrient-packed health foods - add these to your diet and you'll be well on your way to a healthy diet.

If possible, eat your fruits and veggies fresh. Cooked fruits and vegetables lose most of their nutrition value. Salads are one great way that you can eat fruits on a daily basis.

Blueberries

Forget the magic pills promoted by salesmen; nature has it's own anti-aging food - blueberries. Blueberries are rich sources of antioxidants that neutralize the unstable and harmful free radicals in our bodies. Blueberries are known to improve the short term memory and improve night vision. Plus, they contain resveratrol, potentially an anti-cancer agent,, in addition vitamin to C and E.

There are many great ways to eat blueberries. Of course, if you eat them fresh you will get more nutrients than if you eat them cooked. You can use them to make a fresh fruit salad, or eat them fresh with other foods. A handful of blueberries can taste awful good, too.

Black Currants

Great for cardiovascular health, weight loss, and the health of your vision, black currants are also easy to make a part of your regular diet. The antioxidant polyphenol in black currants protects the body from disease; for this reason, black currants have been used as a natural remedy for centuries. Pound for pound black currants have more vitamin C than oranges, making them one of the best sources of vitamin C.

Goji Berries

Considered one of the world's most powerful anti aging foods, goji berries boast antioxidants and polysaccharides that reduce the speed of aging and help the body recover. Goji can also boost the immune system, boost energy levels, and improve overall body function and health.

Goji juice is probably the easiest and tastiest way to eat goji berries. Goji is very hard to find fresh - pretty much impossible for most people. Dried berries aren't as tasty as the juice.

Cranberries

Cranberries are an amazing source of nutrients: Rich in vitamin C, they are also great antioxidants, and great sources of phytochemicals. They also contain Hippuric acid (a antibacterial), potassium , Vitamin A, and many trace nutrients. Cranberries have been used for years to combat urinary tract infections.

You'll want to eat your cranberries fresh to get the most nutrients. They can be rather sour plain, but you can easily make a healthy salad with plain yogurt, nuts and honey.

Kiwi

Kiwi fruits have a variety of great nutrients - The fruit contains Serotonin which has a calming affect on the nerves, reducing stress. Plus, the large number of electrolytes in the fruit make it a great option for those who regularly find themselves short on energy. In fact, it is regularly used by athletes because of its minerals and electrolytes. The presence of Inositol in the kiwi makes it great for diabetes patients, as it helps regulate the body hormones and neurotransmitters.

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