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Strive for Five.

Have you heard that phrase? I’m talking about vegetables. Sometimes when I ask a patient if they have heard about the Strive for Five vegetable campaign, the next inquiry out of a patient’s mouth is “A week?” No! Not a week. A day! And if you have a serious health issue, you will need to eat closer to nine servings of vegetables and fruit a day. How in the world will you get five, much less nine servings of plants into your body each day?

Relax.

It’s not as daunting as you think. First, split your plants into three categories: leafy greens, sulfur-rich veggies, and plants of different colors. I thank Dr. Terry Wahls for this categorization of vegetables. She is an amazing physician and educator who ate her way out of relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis after designing her own wellness program.

Leafy greens is easy. We all know what leafy greens are. We all know what a salad is. Eating one salad a day with three cups of leafy greens counts as 1.5 veggies. Add in a diced carrot, two stalks of chopped celery, and a half of an onion and get that count to four servings in one sitting.

Try a salad for lunch instead of a big carb load like that sandwich you’ve been eating to see what happens to your energy level in the afternoon. I bet you a dollar that your energy doesn’t flag like it does when you eat that heavy carb load.

Besides eating leafy greens, every day you should strive to eat something from the sulfur family. Which veggies have sulfur? The cruciferous veggies like cauliflower, broccoli, kale, and Brussels sprouts, in addition to onions and garlic. These magical plants help your liver to detox, have anti-cancer properties, and help remove heavy metals from your body.

The third group of plants to include in your diet every day is the colorful plants. Eggplant, blueberries, cucumbers, yellow peppers, carrots, and red onions are just a few to pick from. The different colors are made by different nutrients like the beta-carotene in carrots or the extreme antioxidant anthocyanins in blueberries.

You can do it!

Small steps. Add in a salad when you can. Whip up a batch of chili or your favorite vegetable stew on the weekends. Choose healthier snacks like carrots and hummus or celery and guacamole. You got this! Your body will thank you in more ways than you can imagine.

Tune in next blog for a vegetable-packed stir fry recipe.

Not finding time for your five servings a day? Help make up for it with supplementation with a quality vitamin source. Find your best fit using Fullscript or Standard Process. An account can be made for you for one or both of these websites by calling our office or via email at dr.fernan@yahoo.com. We offer quick email consults to help tailor your vitamin prescription to your health needs and concerns, or schedule an appointment by calling (814) 772-0722. Also schedule an appointment if you need to collect on that $1.