Nowadays, binge-eating on unhealthy fast foods have become way too common. The unhealthy cravings to satisfy our taste buds seem to have taken precedence over our health. One particularly nutritious and healthy eating option which we often tend to miss out on these days are vegetables. Deficiency of vegetables in our diet which contain essential nutrients like vitamins and minerals which are necessary to sustain our bodies can lead to a host of health problems. Studies have found that 71 % of Indians consume less than even half the recommended serving of vegetables. Globally low consumption of vegetables claim 1.7 million lives in a year. Though the WHO has recommended a minimum daily consumption of 5 servings of vegetables, Indians eat only about 3.5 servings or even less and this leads to chronic illnessnes and health conditions. The main reasons behind unhealthy dietary habits and lack of vegetables in the diet are the alarming increase in the number of fast food outlets, stressful work schedule and lifestyles and the rapid increase in vegetable prices.
What is meant by vegetables?
Vegetables include any part of plants that is consumed as food by us except fruits, nuts and cereal grains like cabbages, carrots, cauliflowers etc.
Not eating enough vegetables? Here's why you should listen to your mother and include them in your diet:
As we all know our mothers have our best interests at heart. While we tend to avoid healthy eating options and prefer fast foods, our mothers always advise us to keep a check on our diet and go for nutritious foods like vegetables. For those of us who do not like vegetables, here's some points which might make you change your mind about your eating habits:
- Vegetables protect you against various diseases: Due to the presence of several protective and immunity boosting ingredients in them such as antioxidants, flavonoids, vitamins, minerals and fibres, vegetables can help in preventing various diseases like diabetes, obesity, dementia, cardiovascular problems, all types of cancers, alziemer's, depression and various other psychological problems and disorders. Vegetables also help in boosting the health of your cells and internal organs. A recent research has revealed that consuming a little more than 1 extra servings of leafy green vegetables in a day decreases the risk of Type 2 diabetes by 14%. Vegetables contain lots of vital nutrients like fibres which is converted into short chain fatty acids which by our gut bacteria and these are greatly beneficial for our health and have also been known to lessen your chances of suffering from inflammatory diseases.
- Vegetables prevent us from suffering from vitamin and mineral deficinecies: Vitamins and minerals are essential for a healthy and active body to sustain itself and keep functioning properly and they also play a major role in boosting the body's immune system. They are essential for the proper functioning of the body's metabolic processes. For example Vitamin B assists in the production of energy by functioning as enzymes and coenzymes. Vitamins C and E have various anti-oxidant properties which help in combating free radicals. Vegetables also contain minerals like calcium and phosphorus which play an active role in improving the health of our bones, ensuring proper nerve function and also regulate our blood pressure levels. Other minerals like potassium help in maintaining our electrolye balance and and helps in proper and effective nerve transmission. Each and every vitamin and mineral is essential for our good health and proper body functioning and the best way to get them is by incorporating enough vegetables into our diet. Green vegetables are a particularly good choice as they contain nutrients like folate, Vitamin C, biotin, Vitamin K, Vitamin A , potassium, calcium, magnesium etc.
- Vegetables provide us an energy boost: Vegetables are extremely rich in healthy carbohydrates which which fuel our bodies and brains with much-needed energy which is required in order to effectively perform our daily activities. Unlike grains which are a source of heavy carbohydrates, consuming lots of vegetables provide us with an energy boost without making us feel overstuffed. They also help overweight people in losing weight and enable us to maintain an optimum body mass index by eliminating fats from our bodies.
- Vegetables aid in digestion: Eating vegetables regulates our bowel movements and prevents digestive disorders such as constipation etc. It can also save us from serious illnessnes like colon cancer. If we want to fight digestive problems naturally, then vegetables are definitely our best bet.
- Vegetables can add variety to our diets and improves our skin condition: Nobody wants the same type of diet everyday which can lead one to lose interest in healthy foods and go for fast foods. By having different kinds of vegetables we can give ourselves a rich, varied, healthy and nutritious diet which we will not get tired of. As vegetables have water, carotenoid and phytochemical content they make our skin look flushed and glowing and prevent wrinkles, thus making us look younger.
- Vegetables improve our athletic performance and act as a mood-enhancer: Vegetables provide the body with proper nutrition which is essential for good athletic performance. A study has found that men who drank 16 ounces of organic beetroot juice for six days at a stretch could cycle 16 % longer than they could with an ordinary beverage. Also tomato juice reduces exercise-induced stress on the body by about 84%. Research has also found consuming more vegetables has a calming effect on the mind and body and has a profound positive impact on our overall psychological condition.
CONCLUSION:
A WHO study found that even affluent Indians were getting 30 percent of their daily energy intake from fats and were consuming half the amount of dietary fibres and vegetables than their earlier generations. Indians have generally ignored the WHO recommendations of consuming at least 400 grams of vegetables daily and their unhealthy dietary habits have been reflected in the vast increase in the number of chronic illnesses in the country which have become the most common reason for deaths in the country. Cardiovascular diseases claim the maximum fatalities in India and 1 in 10 Indians suffer from diabetes which kill over a million Indians every year. Cancer is at the fourth spot in terms of number of fatalities. These statistics certainly indicate that Indians should watch what they eat. A report has revealed that lack of vegetable intake is among the top ten risk factors behind increasing fatality rates and persons who consumed 7 servings or more of vegetables per day had a 42 % less chance of having an early death than those who ate less than 1 serving and their risks of suffering from cancer and cardiovascular diseases are also lessened by 25% and 31 % respectively. So the next time you have a craving for unhealthy fast foods and your mother insists on you switching over to vegetables instead, remember that the right choice can be the difference between a long, healthy, happy and fulfilling life and an unhealthy life with a high risk of suffering from serious illnesses and a greater risk of an untimely demise.
