March: National Nutrition Month

Sponsored by the American Dietetic Association, this year’s theme is: Eat Right with Color because children tend to eat a bland, beige colored diet, which includes chicken nuggets, fries, and white bread. Not much excitement there…

Fruits and vegetables come in an array of colors and adding them to their diets not only makes the food visually more appealing, but also children can learn how the colors can be indications of nutritional density, says Chicago Sun Time.
Here is a breakdown of the colors:

Blue/purple

-Good sources of anthocyanins, the purplish phytonutrient that put blueberries on the map as a superfood. Other blue and purple foods offer similar benefits.

Choices: Purple grapes, plums, raisins, dried plums, purple asparagus, purple cabbage, purple carrots, eggplant, purple potatoes

Yellow/orange

-Ample amounts of antioxidants, such as vitamin C and beta carotene (vitamin A) in yellow and orange fruits and vegetables.

Choices: Apricots, cantaloupe, mangoes, oranges, tangerines, butternut squash, carrots, pumpkin, sweet potatoes

Red

-Flag for health-promoting compounds like lycopene and anthocyanins.

Choices: Cherries, cranberries, red grapes, raspberries, strawberries, watermelon, beets, red peppers, tomatoes

Green

-Signal for chlorophyll, and green vegetables are potent in folate and such phytonutrients as carotenoids, lutein and indoles.

Choices: Asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green beans, leafy greens such as spinach and kale, peas, snow peas, spinach, zucchini

So remember taste the rainbow!

Read the original article here.