Two new studies show that, when it comes to health and disease, variety in the diet is indeed the spice of life.
One study carried out in Puerto Rico and the other in Spain showed that it is the variety of plant foods rather than the quantity that protects us against disease. Most of us are aware that nutritionists and many government agencies recommend that we eat at least five portions of different fruit and vegetables each day - some experts are suggesting that we should increase this to nine portions per day. These guidelines are based on the nutritional value of these foods in relation to the known minimal daily requirements of essential vitamins and minerals.
But if five portions of fruit and vegetables do indeed provide sufficient vitamins and minerals then why should the experts now recommend that we eat more than this quantity of fruit and vegetables? I don't think that there is a precise scientific reason for these new recommendations; rather it it's a "gut feeling" and the results of studies such as these that confirm how nutrients other than vitamins and minerals help protect us against disease.
The Puerto Rico study (published in the November 10, 2010 edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition) examined the dietary habits and risk for coronary heart disease of 1200 middle-aged Puerto Rican men over a 10 year period.
The authors found that the risk for coronary heart disease amongst this group was reduced, not by the quantity of fruit and vegetables that they consumed, but rather by the variety of these foods that they ate. Those who ate a greater variety of fruit and vegetables also had lower blood levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) - a biomarker for inflammation that also predicts the risk for heart attack and other diseases.
The Spanish study (published in the September 2010 edition of the Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention journal) showed that male smokers who eat more than eight sub-groups of vegetables lowered their risk for lung cancer by 23% compared to those who ate fewer than four sub-groups. Moreover, the risk falls by a further 4% for each unit added to the diet from another sub-group.
These two studies are pretty convincing evidence that plant foods contain a multiplicity of valuable disease-mitigating compounds other than vitamins and minerals. They also show us that, for optimum health, it is not such a good idea to depend only on the "superfood of the month" and a handful of vitamin supplements.
Rather we should focus our attention on increasing the diversity of fruit, vegetables, herbs and spices that we eat.
Keith Scott is a medical doctor with an interest in the healing properties of herbs and spices. He has written several books including Medicinal Seasonings, The Healing Power of Spices.
Download a free pdf copy of Medicinal Seasonings and read more about the health benefits of spices at:
=> http://www.medicinal-herbs-and-spices.com
Watch the VIDEO: Spices - A Health Mystery Solved => http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqIM6QB3wt4
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