The eating rainbow

Take a look at your dinner plate tonight. Your meat is kind of brownish. The rice next to it is brownish, too.

Maybe you've got some white milk with that. But throw in some fresh green beans and a tomato, and your plate suddenly looks a little more healthful. The more color the better, says Jennifer Ebelhar, a dietitian at St.

Louis University. You get those colors from fruits and vegetables, and if you have a colorful plate, it's like getting your multivitamin on a plate. Those colorful fruits and vegetables add important nutrients to your diet.

When talking about kids, seniors, even adults, talking about eating your colors is a wonderful way to talk about variety, says Barbara Boyce, a dietitian in Delaware who is vice president of programs for the nonprofit Produce for Better Health Foundation. Variety is important because we tend to eat the same things day after day. One reason it's so important to eat a variety of colors, says Cathy Feldmeier, a dietitian at St.

Anthony's Medical Center, is phytonutrients. The word comes from phyto, meaning plants, and nutrients, things that nourish our body. That word was not even recorded prior to a decade ago, Feldmeier says.

That's because phytonutrients have only recently been discovered. Scientists have found thousands and are finding even more of these plant-specific nutrients. Nature is full of color, Ebelhar says.

And these deep, rich colors provide natural benefits. The (phytonutrients) help protect plants from damage in nature. And the pigments responsible for plant color belong to antioxidants.

Antioxidants stop free radicals in their tracks. Free radicals are the things that cause damage or oxidation to cells, which in turn causes disease. For example, red tomatoes and watermelon are good sources of the phytonutrient lycopene, which, in population studies of people who eat a lot of those foods, has been found to lower the risk of prostate cancer.

When you include all colors, you really get the protective things that help you fight cancer and heart disease, Feldmeier says. When I have a patient tell me they eat their five fruits a day, but they are all five oranges, I say that's great they are getting vitamin C, but they are missing out on everything else in the other colors. Feldmeier says there is no bad fruit or vegetable when it comes to nutrients.

In addition, they are usually low in calories. Most Americans aren't eating enough fruits and vegetables. Since 1990, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans has recommended at least two servings of fruits and three servings of vegetables daily.

Yet two studies published in the April issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine show that Americans are falling short of the mark. In fact, fewer than 11 percent are meeting the current guidelines for both fruits and vegetables. Now, it has introduced a new campaign: Fruits Veggies More Matters.

We're not saying don't think about color, says the foundation's Boyce. We need to change our behavior so the emphasis is to appeal with a more emotional message. Instead of saying you should eat this many fruits and vegetables, we learned from focus groups that people for the most part know they need to eat more, but they want friendly reminders and tips on how to do it.

The new Fruits Veggies More Matters campaign was also developed to be consistent with the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommends various servings of fruits and vegetables, depending on an individual's caloric needs. The guidelines range from four to 13 servings a day. A portion size is something that confuses many people.

In general, a cup of raw vegetables or fruit or a half-cup of cooked is a serving. And experts want you to know that every kind of fruit and vegetable counts: fresh, frozen, canned, dried, even 100 percent juice. For the most part, the nutrients are the same, Ebelhar says.

But if you cook it until it's pale in color, you start to lose those. She recommends cooking vegetables, even frozen ones, al dente to retain nutrients. Dietitians and health groups disagree about exactly how many color groups there are and where certain foods fit in.

For example, is a banana yellow because of its peel or white because of the flesh? One of the most respected groups, the nonprofit Produce for Better Health Foundation, uses these designations: Nutrients: Many of the items in this category are rich in antioxidants called lycopene and anthocyanins. Health benefits: Linked to fighting high blood pressure, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease and some cancers.

Examples: Tomatoes, watermelon, pink grapefruit, guava, raspberries, cherries, strawberries, beets, red onion. Nutrients: Beta carotene (which turns into vitamin A), vitamin C, vitamin E, folate and bioflavonoids. Health benefits: May reduce the risk for cancer and heart attacks, boost immunity, help maintain good vision and strong bones, teeth and skin.

Nutrients: These foods are rich in the phytonutrients lutein, zeaxanthin and indoles, as well as essential vitamins such as folate. Nutrients: Anthocyanins, vitamin C, folate and polyphenols. Health benefits: May help defend against cancer, reduce the risk of age-related memory loss, help control high blood pressure and reduce the risk of diabetes complications and heart attacks.

Every time you go to the grocery store, buy a fruit or vegetable you've never had or haven't had in a long time. Buy fruit and vegetables washed and cut so they're more convenient. Keep fruit washed and in a bowl where your children can reach it.

Include a fruit and a vegetable at every meal. Be a good role model for your kids. Eat your fruits and vegetables.

Get your family involved. Have them build their own pizza with an array of veggies to choose from. Shop at a farmers market for greater variety.

Change things slowly. Instead of the green pepper you usually get, try a red or yellow pepper. Instead of iceberg lettuce, go with spinach.

Grow a garden. You and your family will be more likely to eat food you have had a part in making.