Eating the Rainbow

The term ‘eat the rainbow’ was coined as an easy way to show adults and children that a colourful plate full of different fruit and vegetables, harbours many valuable vitamins and nutrients for the body.

You may not know this but, colour plays a greater role in the fruit and vegetable world than just looking good on your plate! Each colour holds its own disease fighting properties.The term for these properties is phytochemicals and they are responsible for giving the fruit and vegetables their colour and the nutrients that come with it.

RED

Lycopene is the natural pigment that gives fruit its red colour. Fruit such as strawberries, raspberries, redcurrants and blush cherries are all found to have Lycopene. It is a strong antioxidant that helps keep the heart healthy and reduced the risk of cancer.

BLUE/PURPLE

Anthocyanin is what gives fruit like our blueberries, black cherries and blackberries their blue and purple hue. It has antioxidant properties that help protect and restore damaged cells.

ORANGE/YELLOW

Carotenoids give this group of fruit their orange and yellow colour. Fruit in these colours such as Y.V.Fresh Persimmons and Lemons contain Vitamin A that help maintain healthy eyesight.

GREEN

Green fruit such as our scrumptious Kiwiberries have properties such as carotenoids, indoles and saponins giving them their colour. These help protect the body against illnesses such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease and help with the formation of blood vessels.

It is important to eat a balanced diet full of fruit and vegetables. By eating a diverse set of colours within your food, you are making sure that many different vitamins and nutrients are being fed into your body.