Health Promotion: Nutrition  
Fall 2002
Is Your Diet Colorful Enough?

Eating your greens every day used to be enough. Now the government is urging Americans to eat their reds, white, blues, and yellows, too.

That advice stems from studies showing that different-colored produce contains different phytochemicals, including antioxidants and other disease-fighting substances. Ideally, says the National Cancer Institute, people should eat at least one item of each color daily. But the practical message is to spread your choices among all five groups over time.

The table below lists the possible benefit of the phytochemicals in fruits and vegetables of different colors. The evidence ranges from moderately strong observational data in humans, for phytochemicals such as lycopene, beta-carotene, and lutein, to predominantly animal or laboratory research on substances such as anthocyanins and indoles.

Fruit or Vegetable

Phytochemical

Possible Benefits

Guava, pink grapefruit,

Lycopene

Reduced prostate cancer risk

tomatoes, watermelon

Beets, cranberries, kidney beans,

Anthocyanins*

Lowered blood pressure,

raspberries, red apples, red

protection against circulatory

cabbage, red onions,

problems caused by diabetes

strawberries, sweet cherries

Garlic, leeks, white onions

Allicin

Reduced risk of cancer

spread and heart attack; lowered

cholesterol and blood pressure;

enhance infection defenses

Blackberries, black currants,

Anthocyanins

Reduced risk of cancer disease,

blueberries, elberberries,

and age-related memory loss

purple grapes

Eggplant, plums, prunes, raisins

Phenotics

Slowing of some effects of aging

Apricots, butternut squash,

Beta-carotene

Reduced risk of cancer and

cantaloupe, carrots, mangos,

heart disease; maintenance

peaches, pumpkin, sweet potatoes

of good vision; increased

infection fighting

Apricots, clementines, grapefruit,

Bioflavonoids

Together with the vitamin C

lemons, nectarines, oranges,

in these fruits, reduced

papaya, peaches, pears,

cancer and heart-attack

pineapple, tangerines,

yellow peppers, yellow raisins

Broccoli, green peas, honeydew

Lutein

Maintenance of good vision;

melon, kale, kiwifruit, leafy

reduced risk of macular

greens, romaine lettuce, spinach

degeneration and cataracts

Arugala, broccoli, Brussels

Indoles

Reduced risk of breast and

sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower,

prostate cancer

kale, rutabaga, Swiss chard,

turnips, watercress