With so many fast food restaurants and the wealth of prepackaged convenience food it seems that it is just easier for many of us to pick expediency over good nourishment. But, preserving our good health in the long run depends upon being intelligent about what we consume.

There seems to be an awareness that nutrition and diet play a function in our good health but the fact is that not only can first-rate nutrition help us uphold good health it can even advance good health by helping to inhibit illness, reversing the troubles of aging and helping us to live improved, longer and more vital lives.

The foods that should be the starting point for our beneficial diet plans are the foods that are grown in nature. These foods come from the farmers markets and the produce sections of our favorite grocery stores. They come from our gardens, from the soil and the vines and the trees. These are the foods that our great-grandparents ate. Plant based foods should be the starting point for a healthy, healthy diet. Lean meats, poultry and fish can also have a place in a healthy diet but the chief components need to be plant-based.

Recent study into the study of antioxidants has discovered a profusion of likely health benefits from a array of foods. There are carotenoids and flavonoids and polyphenols. There is selenium, folic acid, lutein, lycopene. In recent times you may have heard about an outstanding nutrient called resveratol. The names go on and on and it can get to be very bewildering if you read all of the data.

But in order to receive the utmost nutritional value from your diet it is not necessary to know about the individual nutrients. All you need to do is to choose the most colorful vegetables and fruits. Eat beans frequently as a good source of protein and fiber. Nibble on nuts and seeds and make sure that the grains you eat are whole instead of processed. You can even get pleasure from 1 ounce of dark chocolate everyday and a glass of red wine.

The orange foods provide carotenoids and other vital nutrients. These would include pumpkin, orange bell peppers, butternut squash, cantaloupe, sweet potatoes and carrots. Make sure you also include plenty of the red foods, like tomatoes and watermelon. Shun nearly all white foods with the exception of cauliflower and jicama.

Green foods such as kale, Swiss chard, bok choy, romaine lettuce and spinach supply an abundance of nutrients and they are exceptionally constructive to our health. They are practically a ideal diet food because they are low in calories and high in fiber. The deep colors of blue, purple and deep reds bestow some of the maximum antioxidant capacities of any foods. These foods include blueberries, cranberries, red grapes and the acai berry.

Not just maintaining good health but also actually escalating good health is more critical than ever as we age. We can thwart illness and the challenges connected with aging by including the most multi-colored foods in our diet.

Article Source: http://www.ArticleBlast.com