Color Your Diet: Less Of White And More Of Bright
Adding more colors to your diet can mean more nutrition. Food manufacturers process white foods, particularly grains and rice, to remove the perishable kernel and germ. This helps them extend the shelf life and ensure bigger profits. However, processing decreases the nutritional value. It is important therefore to color your diet by eating less refined white sugar and processed or bleached white flour.
Since whole grain products are not bleached and refined, they contain the entire germ and bran layer, which is perishable. You will need to store them in the refrigerator. So only buy what you need to last for a week or two. They are definitely worth the extra effort because you will be eating nutritional foods.
Forget about eating white rice. Vital nutrients, including fiber, Vitamin Bs and other important minerals making up the bran layer are stripped off white rice and left with just simple carbohydrate. Even though some manufacterers claim that their rice is “enriched”, it does not compare with eating say brown rice. Although white and brown rice has the same amount of calories, brown has three times more fiber (3.5 grams versus 1 gram) and other minerals. Replace white rice with whole grain brown rice and wild rice, which is actually the seed. Like brown rice, wild rice offers 3 grams of fiber per serving.
The same goes for flour and pasta. Avoid white flour and go for whole wheat. Whole wheat may cost more but you are really paying for the higher nutritional value and you do not have to eat too much for adequate intake.
Color your diet with vegetables and fruits of all colors. They offer different Vitamins and minerals. You will not go wrong with choosing dark green leafy vegetables and throw in red tomatoes, yellow peppers and orange pumpkin.
Still, not all white foods are bad. Some are great for you. Think of foods such as toufu, turnips and water chestnuts.
