When I encourage clients to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, I often ask them to “eat the rainbow". Most people know that they should be trying to eat fruits and vegetables, but why is it so important, what do the colours even mean, and does it truly benefit your health?
 

Put simply, eating the rainbow basically involves eating fruits and vegetables of different colours every day. This means not sticking to the same three or four veg that we usually have.

Plants contain different pigments which give them their individual colour.  Interestingly, these pigments are actually phytonutrients, which can be defined as chemicals produced by plants. However, the term is generally used to describe chemicals from plants that may be beneficial to health, but are not essential nutrients.  

From an evolutionary perspective, the noxious properties of such phytochemicals play an important role in dissuading insects and other pests from eating the plants. However, at the relatively tiny doses ingested by us as we eat the plant, the phytochemicals are not toxic and induce a mild cellular stress response. A stress response to a small toxic stress allows us to produce an anti-inflammatory response and so the body kicks into action.

Each different-coloured plant is linked to different phytonutrients, from which we in turn can derive different health benefits. See the list below which defines which benefits may be derived from which colours.

While increasing the amount of fruit and veg is always a good idea, focusing on eating a variety of colours will increase your intake of different nutrients, and consequently may help to improve your health.

While there are many purported benefits of phytonutrients, it’s difficult to perform scientific trials to prove how effective they are. Therefore, most research into phytonutrients has been based on the intakes at population-level and relative disease risk, therefore eating well and widely is not a replacement for healthcare for specific ailments. However, almost all research has shown benefits from regularly eating colourful fruits and vegetableswith virtually no downsides at all. So pop those veggies on your plate.

By getting a variety of colour in your diet, you’re not only giving your body an array of vitamins and minerals, but different phytochemicals to boot which may benefit your health.

Rainbow Breakfast Smoothie

Following on from the newsletter this week, here’s a great way to incorporate rainbow foods into your day.

Ingredients

1 cup mixed frozen berries – raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, blackcurrants - Red Blue Purple

Couple handfuls of spinach - Green

1 satsuma, peeled - Orange 

1 inch ginger root, peeled and grated - Yellow 

200ml almond milk - White 

1 tbsp ground flaxseed - Tan / Brown

1 tbsp chia seeds - Black

200ml filtered water (and more, if thinner consistency desired

Method

Put all of the ingredients in a high-speed blender and blitz until thick and smooth.

Pour into two glasses and add extra water until it’s the consistency you desire. Serve and enjoy!

"Men are rather reasoning than reasonable animals for the most part governed by the impulse of passion"

- Alexander Hamilton, 1802

It's January. Everywhere you go you'll see images and messages about change. Changes in diets. Changes in exercise patterns. New challenges to try - dry January, Veganuary, walking challenges, drawing challenges. It's a great time of year to start working on these new things - a time to re-assess our lives and see what we'd like to tweak. But how can we make these changes stick? How do we know we're not going to be popping those new watercolour paints into the bottom drawer with last year's hobby?

To begin with we often try to rely on willpower. Willpower can be defined as the ability to delay gratification, resisting short-term temptations in order to meet long-term goals, or what could otherwise be called resolve. Secondly, it can be defined as the capacity to override an unwanted thought, feeling, or impulse, or what could be termed suppression. For example, when you find yourself heading towards that leftover box of Christmas chocolates, you resolve not to eat it so you can have the reward of not gaining weight, and you also suppress the urge to eat them all because they are delicious.

This combination of resolve and urge suppression requires a great deal of self-control. However, research shows us that when we use willpower to resist temptation, this can leave us with less self-control to tackle other challenges. In a recent report, the American Psychological Association stated "A growing body of research shows that resisting repeated temptations takes a mental toll. Some experts liken willpower to a muscle that can get fatigued from overuse". So by resisting eating those chocolates, you may find yourself reaching for a burger later on, rather than the salad that you had planned to have.  In a world where we have so many distractions competing for our attention - social media, one-click shopping, online streaming - the ability to resist tempation may get sapped quite early on.  And additionally, it may have a knock-on effect on our ability to control our emotions, behaviours, or thoughts.

However, this doesn't mean we should give up! What can help us to ensure we keep going with that early morning yoga practice?  Recent research has shown us that building habits may help maintain an activity indefinitely. A habit may be defined as responses that develop over time when people do the same thing in the same context. Habit building can be encouraged by including some or all of the following:

• Creat a behaviour chain or trigger - for example, if I regularly leave my yoga mat next to my bed along with my yoga clothes, when that alarm bell goes at 7am I'm ready to get dressed and get going, without the thought of having to coerce myself into doing it.
• Narrow down your options - this stops willpower being involved too much! And allows you to focus on what you really want to change.
• Make it daily - and mark that time out on your calendar. Consistency is key in laying down new habits. 
• Keep going for 66 days - research shows that's the magic number to make it stick! 
• Start simple - don't try and change everything at once. Rather than throwing everything out on day 1, make a plan to simplify and make small changes each week. If it's a new way of eating you're after, start with your breakfasts - build this habit. Then move on to lunch, and so on. This way it will really stick.

So maybe if you're looking to tweak how you eat, exercise, or live your life, rather than relying on willpower and self-control to keep it going, have a look at how you can build it into a habit. Then it may last a lifetime.

Photo by Drew Beamer on Unsplash

References:

Ainslie G (2020) Willpower Without Effort Behavioural and Brain Sciences 1-81 DOI: 10.1017/S0140525X20000357

American Psychological Association (2021) What You Need to Know About Willpower: The Psychological Science of Self-Control last accessed online 08.01.2021 at https://www.apa.org/topics/willpower

Duckworth AL Milkman KL Laibson D (2018) Beyond Willpower: Strategies for Reducing Failures of Self Control Association for Psychological Sciences 19 (3) 102-129

Neal DT Wood W Drolet A (2013) How Do People Adhere to Goals When Willpower is Low? The Profits (and Pitfalls) of Strong Habits American Psychological Association 104 (6) 959-975

So, how do you get started with mindful eating? Well, here are my six top tips for incorporating mindful eating into your daily life:

1. Have a list - by preparing in advance what we need, this will help stop any impulse purchases at the shop. We know what we need and what we are looking for, so armed with our shopping list we can stick to this. Being aware of the food choices we are making and what we are bringing home is an excellent start to the process. This also ensures that what we reach for at home is what we want to eat.

2. Avoid extreme hunger - It's good to be hungry when sitting down to eat a meal, but not so much so that we're compelled to make the wrong choices as we're in a massive hurry and feeling famished. Being ravenously hungry and going past the point of when we should have eaten may make us panic and reach for foods that we wouldn't normally go for purely out of convenience.

3. Make a conscious decision to eat - by planning our meals in advance this allows us to know when we are eating and what we will be eating. This helps us avoid the pitfall of ravenous hunger, but also helps us avoid absent-mindedly picking as we don't know what to eat. Particularly at this time of year, you might like to indulge in festive treats, by making a conscious decision to do so, this will allow you to determine how much and what you have.

4. Take time to appreciate your food - start with a small pause to smell and admire the food are eating. Hey, you or someone else has gone to some effort to provide this for you! The digestive process starts in the brain, so taking some time to smell, see and acknowledge your meal can also help improve digestion, as well as allowing you to enjoy the process.

5. Take your time over eating your food - I grew up in a house where it was always a race to see who could finish dinner first and get down from the table. This is not what we should be doing! By eating more slowly and chewing thoroughly we help get the digestive processes working effectively, but we also allow the brain to sense when our bodies are full. And you get a chance to savour the foods as you eat them.

6. Eat without distractions - turn off the telly, shut the laptop, sit down at the table. By eating with no external distractions, we can turn our full attention to what we are eating - which, in turn, allows us to be more in tune with our bodies, appetites and sense of fullness. 
 

As well as providing nutrients and energy, food should be a source of fun and enjoyment. And this is particularly true as we approach the festive season. Sharing food with our families is such an integral part of this time of year and we should take the time to enjoy it guilt-free.

By following these six simple steps hopefully we can taken some of the absent-minded eating away, leaving us with the foods we have consciously chosen, eaten in a way that enables us to enjoy them, and thereby we can thoroughly appreciate our celebrations.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

This is a real family favourite, and one we come back to time and again. It's largely made from store cupboard items and common veg that I usually have in the fridge.  This is also a good recipe to make if you have veggie or vegan friends popping over, or to add in to your repertoire if you are thinking of trying out Veganuary.

Do have a look at my article 'Six Simple Steps for a Health Veganuary' if you are thinking of taking part next month.

You can adjust the spice level to whatever you prefer. My kids are just venturing in to more spicy foods, so we've moved to adding cayenne pepper.  But you can adjust as you see fit or leave it out entirely if you're not keen on hot foods - the cumin and paprika give it a lovely flavour.

Serves 4

2 onions, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 stick celery, finely chopped

3 carrots, chopped

1 large courgette, chopped

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tbsp sweet smoked paprika

1 tsp chilli powder, whichever heat you prefer

2 tins chopped tomatoes

1 tin kidney beans, drained

1 tin black beans, drained

1 tin aduki beans, drained 

1 tbsp tomato puree

Seasoning to taste

• Heat the oil gently in a large heavy based pan. Add the onions and sauté until soft.

• Add the chopped carrots, courgette and celery. Stir to combine and cook gently.

• Add the dried spices and crushed garlic, stir to combine well and heat until fragrant.

• Add the chopped tomatoes and stir to combine. Add the drained beans and tomato puree, mix well.

• Add seasoning to taste and let it simmer gently for 25-30 minutes. Keep stirring regularly so it doesn’t stick at the base.

• Serve with wholegrain rice or quinoa.

What exactly is mindful eating? 

Well, research defines it as incorporating the following:

• Mindfully noticing the eating experience by noticing the smell, texture and taste of the food
• Reducing how quickly we eat
• Understanding and acknowledging our own response to foods (likes, dislikes, or don’t mind) without any judgement
• Being aware of physical hunger and satiety cues to allow us make the right decision regarding when to start and stop eating
• Research shows that being mindful of what we put in our mouths not only stops us from accidentally over-consuming, with the problems that that entails, but also allows us to really enjoy the process and take full advantage of the flavours and experiences of the food we choose to eat.
• Mindful eating allows us to be in tune with our hunger, to sense our levels of fullness, and to feel satisfied about what we are consuming

So, how does mindful eating work?

Digestion actually begins in the brain in what is termed the 'cephalic phase' of eating. Just by acknowledging, smelling and seeing our food, our brain starts to get our body ready for the digestive process ahead. Just think about a time when you've smelled fresh bread wafting out of the bakers, or when you watch Nigella making anything on TV - your body starts to prepare to eat - your tummy rumbles, your mouth waters.

Stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system,, or the 'rest and digest' mode of our bodies, by the evidence of an imminent meal triggers the brain to prepare the digestive tract for nourishment.

Taking this time allows your digestive juices in your mouth and stomach to get to work, thereby improving the level of digestion you will achieve. Remember the last time you bolted down a meal and felt bloated and terrible - your body wasn't in the right state to be accepting that food, and therefore your digestion was impaired.

But it's not just physical preparation that is helped by mindful eating. Research shows that it affects us emotionally too. Psychologists have found that mindfulness helps people to recognise the difference between emotional and physical hunger and satiety, thereby introducing a moment of opportunity and consideration between the urge to eat and the act of eating.

It's all too common for us to eat for many reasons that aren't actual physical hunger - boredom, sadness, irritation, sometimes just because it's there. And that's ok - but by giving ourselves a moment's contemplation, we allow ourselves the opportunity to decide if it really is what we want to do.

Check out my article here for some top tips for mindful eating during the festive season.

Photo by Lesly Juarez on Unsplash