What kinds of nutrients can be found in fruits and vegetables?
Fruits and vegetables offer a wide range of nutrients and health-promoting substances. Here are some good examples:
Nutrient components
- Vitamins: Vary among fruit and vegetables. Examples include vitamin A, folic acid, riboflavin and vitamin C.
- Minerals: Differ among fruit and vegetables. These may include iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium and zinc.
- Water: The water content by weight is as high as 90 % in some fruit and vegetables such as lettuce and watermelon.
- Dietary fibre: It is not digested and absorbed in the body but it is an essential nutrient to maintain gut health.
Other non-nutritive substances
- Phytochemicals: Phytochemicals are substances that occur naturally in plants and are thought to improve health and reduce risks of diseases. Fruit and vegetables of different colours have unique arrays of phytochemicals. Therefore, it is important to include a variety of colourful fruits and vegetables in your diet.
Will eating more fruit and vegetables help prevent diseases?
Various researches showed that eating adequate amounts of fruit and vegetables as part of a balanced diet can help prevent many major diseases and health problems:
- Some cancers such as colorectal cancer
- Heart diseases
- Stroke
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Obesity