Eat More Fruits and Vegetables!

We should be eating more fruits and vegetables every day!

Eating more fruits and vegetables can play a role in the prevention of heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes and cancer. These are some of the leading health issues in the Latino community. It may be simple to consider eating more fruits and vegetables to help in our well-being, but why don’t more of us do it?

According to the experts in the nutrition field, we should be eating between 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Do you meet that requirement?

Let’s take it back for a minute. Getting your greens in is highly important especially because fruits and veggies are low in calories, high in vitamins, minerals and fiber. But what is the real difference between fruits and vegetables? Are they all just the same thing?

Based on information from the Mayo Clinic, a botanist would say that a fruit develops from the flower; the section that contains seeds. It’s the rest of the plant, including the stems, leaves and roots that are vegetables.

If you take that information and apply it to what we know as fruits and vegetables, the following are technically fruits:

• Avocados
• Beans
• Peapods
• Corn kernels
• Cucumbers
• Grains
• Nuts
• Olives
• Peppers
• Pumpkin/squash
• Sunflower seeds
• Tomatoes

Vegetables include:

• Celery
• Lettuce
• Cauliflower and broccoli
• Beets
• Carrots
• Potatoes

This is based on scientific reasoning, however when we start talking about cooking styles and tastes, fruits and vegetables become even more distinct. Vegetables are typically less sweet than fruits and at times more savory, served along with the main dish. Fruits, as you may have guessed, are usually sweeter or tart and served as a dessert or snack. They also contain more sugars than most vegetables.

What’s in season?

Finding out what’s in season may lead you in a search. Besides going to farmer’s markets to find local fare, the vegetables and fruits there are in season. Visit one or take a look at the list below to get a good idea as to what you should be eating and when. For the full list of all seasonal foods, visit the United States Department of Agriculture’s Seasonal Produce Guide.

We want to hear from you! Tell us in the comments below if you have tips to eating fruits and vegetables or what stands in your way of getting the recommended daily intake.