The First Healthy Step

Based on the statistics, chances are that one of the best changes you could make to what you eat would be to eat more vegetables. Vegetables are some of the most nutritious foods on the planet. Missing out on this food group can leave your body deficient in more than just peas and carrots. There’s a reason people might tend to avoid this food group. If you’re accustomed to sweetened foods and drinks or foods containing lots of spices, vegetables may not seem very appetizing. There are solutions for this though. Vegetables needn’t taste bland and boring. There are a million options for transforming the familiar taste of vegetables into flavors that pop out and make you as excited to eat them as the main course of the meal. Frozen vegetables can be steamed (or microwaved ) with butter and salted to taste. You can also mix vegetables with rice or gently fry vegetables such as peppers with a healthy frying oil like Olive Oil. Using these tips, you should be able to get even the pickiest kids excited to eat those vegetables. And that’s a good thing because each vegetable has a unique profile of chemicals which you can’t necessarily get from any other food. The entire food group is generally a good source of Vitamin K and also Magnesium which are both high up on the list of the most commonly deficient vitamins and minerals. Vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin necessary for healthy teeth and bones as well as healthy blood clotting. Green leafy vegetables are especially good sources of this vitamin. About 50% of newborns in the United States are born deficient in Vitamin K. Magnesium is a mineral which supports healthy teeth and bones as well as activating many other biological processes. So you may not have realized that dairy products and Calcium are NOT the only foods you really need to support teeth and bones! Vegetables actually help prevent cavities and osteoporosis and keep that smile shining! Magnesium also plays a crucial role as an antioxidant involved with the support of the Mitochondria which power every cell in our body. Mitochondria are especially concentrated in the brain and heart so as you might guess, Magnesium is protective of heart disease and brain disease. Additionally, Magnesium keeps your skin in a youthful state, supports the Immune System, and the activation of your full genetic potential. And the list doesn’t stop there! It’s estimated that about 80% of Americans are deficient in Magnesium. This mineral is powerful and it’s crazy to think about how many of us are running low on it! There’s also Fiber which sweeps along the inside of your digestive tract and keeps digestion moving at a healthy pace. This is an important part of the body’s natural Detoxification system. So, which vegetables pack the most benefits? Well, there’s actually a few which stand out from a nutritional perspective. You may have heard of the Brassica family. This group of vegetable plants includes: Broccoli, Kale, Brussel Sprouts, Cauliflower, and Cabbage. These are all pretty much right on the line of being considered a superfood. Broccoli, especially, is basically a key type of vegetable which everybody should consume regularly. Why is it so great? Well, it is very multi-purpose in how it benefits the body’s systems. It supports the body’s Phase II Detox system and the natural Organosulfurs support Glutathione synthesis which is the body’s primary antioxidant. Broccoli enhances insulin-signaling and strengthens the cells’ mitochondria, both factors which mean that consuming Broccoli can be a good way to prevent or reverse Diabetes.Broccoli even supports the production of Free Testosterone in men so it’s good for general vitality and sex drive as well! So if you can find a way to make Broccoli a tasty part of your meals, there are numerous priceless health benefits ready for you to reap! Another vegetable I’ll cover is the tomatoe. These round, red pieces of juicy plant meat are technically more like a fruit than a vegetable but we’ll include it here anyway. Tomatoes hare an absolutely amazing source of Lycopene, a truly powerful natural chemical found very abundantly in this…er…fruit-vegetable-thing. One thing to note here is that Lycopene’s absorption rate into the bloodstream is amplified when you pair it with Olive Oil. These two produce plants, Broccoli and Tomatoes, are Anti-Aging miracles. Eaten regularly and integrated into a holistic health strategy, you’ll have a good chance of living most of your Earthly life in a relatively youthful state. These foods can even reverse some signs of ageing after the damaging processes have already begun. So if you haven’t traditionally been a fan of vegetables, there is hope for you yet! Lastly, vegetables are Alkaline, meaning they have lower pH which promotes healing and prevents cancer. Make vegetables at the center of your Food Pyramid and see what happens! I’ll be excited to hear any stories of recipes or results you’ve gotten from changing the way you interact with the vegetable world! Cheers to Optimization! Support the Blog and Donate $10