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Tuesday, 08 November 2011 17:37 |
Peanut butter and jelly, mac and cheese; are a couple of popular examples of things which just seem to go together. When it comes to nutritional health its not just about calories and getting energy – it's about making the most of those calories for your all-around good health, healthy heart, clear skin and strong mind. It's important to eat a balanced diet but by knowing which foods work best together you maximize the benefit of those calories you consume. Certain combinations of foods provide more nutritional benefit and fight disease better than when you eat those same foods solo.
Nutrients in foods are just like the random pieces of a puzzle fitting together to give a complete picture of health. As a consumer when you look at labels or hear the news on the latest dietary guidelines they seem to only reference one nutrient at a time. This is a little misleading because most nutrients don't fly solo. They interact, join forces and are work in collaboration; better together to give you more of what you need.
The following are some ideas of common foods and what you can pair with them to get the most benefit. It will help to inform some food choices and give just a taste of what I have already referred to, the cruel complexity of the nutrition lurking behind the guidelines and the so-called easy-to-read labels:
-Chicken and pasta work together to protect against heart disease. The folic acid (found naturally in vegetables and beans and added to enrich pasta and grain products) in pasta increases absorption of the B vitamins, specifically B12 in chicken (also found in other animal products). This nutritional pair also breaks down an amino acid homocysteine which at high levels is linked to Alzheimer's disease.
Other options: For breakfast, fill an omelette with spinach. For dinner cook a pacific salmon fillet with a side of asparagus - limit the amount of alcohol you consume as this can impede your body's ability to use the vitamins in your meal.
-Salsa and avocadoes can help reduce prostate cancer risk in men. Vitamin E in the avocado and the plant chemical lycopene found in the tomatoes in salsa were shown in studies to reduce growth of prostate cancer cells by 75 percent.Lycopene is found in red tinted vegetables and fruits and is a powerful antioxidant believed to help prevent heart disease and certain cancers. Because lycopene is fat soluble it is absorbed best when accompanied by fats.
Researchers at Ohio State University found when subjects ate tomatoes and avocadoes together they absorbed 4.4 times more lycopene.
Other Options: Besides guacamole and salsa with baked chips or toasted pita wedges try bruchetta with chopped tomatoes, garlic and olive oil.
Try cubed cantaloupe with crushed walnuts and greek yogurt.
-Pair avocadoes with spinach. Monounsaturated good fat in avocado helps absorb 15 times the beta carotene and 5 times the lutein, the cancer and heart disease fighting caretenoids found in spinach and other colourful fruits and vegetables.
-Inulin is found in foods like garlic, onions, leeks, bananas and wheat and rye. Inulin helps promote the growth of healthy bacteria found in yogurt and increases calcium absorption in the intestines. Many products, including yogurts are adding inulin; however, you can consume it naturally in foods as well.
Other options: Eat yogurt with sliced bananas and wheat germ or make a dip with garlic, onions, leeks and yogurt to help with bone health and digestion.
-Having a vitamin C containing food like citrus fruits , strawberries or melon along with green tea enables more of green tea's antioxidants to remain after digestions and green tea also increases the amount of catechins available. Catechins in green tea support health benefits like reduced risk of cancer, heart attack and stroke.
Other options: Iced tea with a bowl of fruit salad, hot green tea with toast and 1/2 fresh grapefruit or orange.
-Vitamin C in foods helps with the absorption of iron. Iron is an essential nutrient and there are two kinds. Heme found in meats and seafood and nonheme found in chickpeas, dark green leafies and other plants. The trouble is the non heme type of iron is not easily absorbed and assimilated by the body which is where vitamin C enters in. Foods high in vitamin C like citrus, bell peppers and strawberries raise the acidity in the intestines which then allows for the nonheme variety of iron to be more easily absorbed.
Other Options: drizzle lemon or orange vinaigrette on a spinach and strawberry salad or add chopped red bell peppers to chickpeas for a side or add some sautéed spinach to pasta and tomato sauce. At meals when you are mixing iron and C avoid tea, whole grains and dairy all of which inhibit nonheme iron absorption.
These dynamic duos are yet another reason to support why food is often nutritionally preferable to pills or supplements . Food contains a mixture of nutrients so we benefit from those interactions with each delicious mouthful!
Written By: Sherry Ogasawara, Registered Dietitian
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