Author: JBrown@welia.org

Your mother was right….you need to eat your vegetables…especially the ones high in flavonoids!

Flavonoids are a group of phytochemicals thought to be partly responsible for the disease prevention effect of diets high in vegetables, fruits and plant based beverages such as tea and wine.

Many flavonoids are shown to have antioxidative activity and some have been linked with reducing the risk of coronary heart disease. Some studies show flavonoids can have an anticancer effect with more recent research suggesting that diets high in flavonoids can help minimize the weight gain that often occurs with aging, though more research is needed in this area.

Savor the flavonoids in the following foods and beverages and try to include them often: blueberries (wild blueberries having more antioxidants than cultivated blueberries), blackberries, eggplant, plums, purple cabbage, purple grapes, raisins, cranberries, black olives, and black and green tea. Black currants and elderberries are also high in flavonoids though not widely consumed in our area.

The following foods contain flavonoids in smaller amounts but because of the popularity in the American diet, they end up being substantial contributors of flavonoids: bananas, strawberries, cherries, oranges and orange juice, grapefruit juice, onions, tomatoes and apples.

Cocoa is also high in flavonoids but use caution if you plan to increase your intake of cocoa for the health benefit of the flavonoids. Keep in mind that although chocolate contains cocoa, it also contains sugar, milk and other ingredients that can make it a less healthy choice. The flavonoid content of milk chocolate is much lower than dark chocolate. Look for a dark chocolate with a high percentage of cacao to obtain the flavonoid benefits.

You still have a chance to win prizes by completing the nutrition puzzle and returning it to Melissa Merrick, RD, LD or Danna Woods, RD, LD by March 31^st.

~ Danna Woods

Nutrition Month Puzzle

Are you an automatic eater?  Are you eating food just because it is there?  Donuts brought in by a coworker, cookies at a meeting, or samples at the grocery store.  Remember there are two reasons to eat:

1. To fuel your body.

2. To appreciate flavors

When you grab food because it’s in front of you, you’re not trying to appreciate flavors.  In fact, most likely you already know how the food will taste, and often you don’t even pay much attention to it.  As far as fueling your body in these circumstances the food offered does not provide the right balance of protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals to provide energy.  It may even make you hungrier which leads to grazing and overeating later in the day.  One way to look at this scenario is to have a policy that states “I don’t eat food just because it is there”, write it down and remind yourself of it often.  This will help you to slow down and be mindful of your decisions around food.

~ Melissa Merrick, RD, LD