Eat Your Colors

We worry sometimes that we're not getting enough variety in our diet. We don't consume enough color variations. We almost never use red green peppers or yellow squash or purple eggplants.

Every year the American Chemical Society (ACS) presents their reports on their latest research and every year we're at the ready to receive what they have to say. We know you'll be hearing and seeing the news but you'll miss the big story. This time it was "Eating berries may activate the brain’s natural housekeeper for healthy aging." But it's more than that. We encourage you to consume more and we're heading to grocer now to pick up some $1.50 a pound for frozen blueberries. (Your prices may vary [city residents expect to pay more].)

"Shibu Poulose, Ph.D., who presented the report, said previous research suggested that one factor involved in aging is a steady decline in the body’s ability to protect itself against inflammation and oxidative damage. This leaves people vulnerable to degenerative brain diseases, heart disease, cancer, and other age-related disorders. “The good news is that natural compounds called polyphenolics found in fruits, vegetables and nuts have an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect that may protect against age-associated decline,” said Poulose, who is with the U. S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging in Boston."

We love the song "What a Wonderful World" sung by Louis Armstrong. Especially the parts where he sings:

I see leaves of green, red roses too
I watch them bloom, for me and you
And I say to myself, what a wonderful world

I see skies of blue, clouds of white
Bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I say to myself, what a wonderful world

The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people passing by
I see friends shaking hands, saying, "How do you do?"
They're only saying, "I love you" 

"Their past studies, for instance, showed that old laboratory rats fed for two months on diets containing 2 percent high-antioxidant strawberry, blueberry, or blackberry extract showed a reversal of age-related deficits in nerve function and behavior that involves learning and remembering." (ACS)

Eat the colors. Put the rainbow inside your body for better health. Indeed squash and eggplant might be alot less expensive than the berries and we can stretch our dollar as well as improve our health. The berries are sexy but the story is from both the researchers and research is while the deep red, orange aren't blue there consumption can be and should be considered just as important.

"Although berries and walnuts are rich sources, many other fruits and vegetables contain these chemicals - especially those with deep red, orange, or blue colors. Those colors come from pigments termed anthocyanins that are good antioxidants." (American Chemical Society)

Crayola should do something about it - except it might promote the eating of their product which would be the wrong kind of colors to eat. When we think of "the colors of the rainbow" we think like, the good consumers we are,of the product placement. We think of the only real crayons we've ever known. But since you the readers aren't infants you won't make that mistake when we say" "Eat your colors!"