Features
A healthy diet should be full of color
While some things are black and white, your dinner plate is one place that should be full of color.
Eating a variety of colorful fruits and vegetables on a daily basis provides the body with numerous vitamins, minerals, fiber and other compounds needed for a healthy lifestyle.
Fruits and vegetables in the diet are extremely important because they provide needed nutrients to help ensure good health. The USDA MyPyramid contains recommendations regarding how to get enough fruits and vegetables into your diet. Not only do these foods taste great, they also contain nutrients that may lower your risk of certain types of cancer and heart disease.
Fruits are shown by the red band and vegetables are indicated by the green band in the USDA MyPyramid. Just a few years ago, research indicated that 84 percent of Oklahomans did not eat enough fruits and vegetables.
The amount a person needs each day from the USDA MyPyramid fruit and vegetable group will depend on age, gender and level of physical activity. For a reference 2,000 calorie diet, the USDA MyPyramid recommends two cups of fruit and two and one-half cups of vegetables each day. The MyPyramid’s Web site is www.mypyramid.gov.
Getting children to eat the recommended number of servings per day can be difficult. You might try letting your child pick a fruit or vegetable at the grocery store. Also, playing “Name that Fruit” with the produce you have in the kitchen might encourage consumption. Let your child keep track of the different colors of fruits and vegetables they eat. See what different colors of fruits and vegetables they have during the week. Help your child make a poster of fruits and vegetables. Hang it up in the kitchen to remind them to eat fruits and vegetables each day.
It’s important to include a rainbow of colors in your fruit and vegetable selections, including purple, green, white, yellow, orange and red. Adding a variety of color to your plate will provide important nutrients for good health.
For more information in Pittsburg County, call 918-423-4120 or log onto www.oces.okstate.edu/pittsburg.
LaDell Emmons is the Extension Family and Consumer Sciences Educator for the Pittsburg County Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service. Reach her via email at ladell.emmons@okstate.edu. Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability or status as a veteran and is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
- Features
-
-
Last park concert of summer set for Thursday
Members of a local band which calls itself Anacrusis may be young — but they couple a love for roots music with modern rock to create their sound.
-
Calling all Pittsburg County schools
It's time for the school tab. Please e-mail all school supply lists and calendars to mcarter@mcalesternews.com no later than noon on Friday to have them included in this year's publication, set to hit the stands just before school starts.
-
Local Boy Scout reports from across the nation
-
Rebuild credit after divorce
Divorce can be life-altering and stressful for all parties involved. Being left with little or no credit or a tarnished credit history only adds to the stress.
-
A world of difference, from a world away
Care packages can make a world of difference to a soldier stationed overseas.
-
Joy of Travel: There's only one Mona Lisa
There is only one Mona Lisa, and there is only one museum fabulous enough to house it – the Louvre in Paris, France.
-
High school reunion? Oh yeah!
A man got on an airplane to head north on a business trip. As he took his seat he found himself sitting next to a young boy about 17, who was gazing out the window with his hand under his chin. The plane had taken off when the boy looked at the man with tears in his eyes.
-
Hidden talent arises in Legion
McAlester often has many great things to offer its community, some of them are for veterans. The Harrison-Powers American Legion Post No. 79 is among such organizations.
- TEAM all about progress
-
To market, to market
The Pittsburg County Farmers Market has a fresh coat of paint, and Kiowa FFA students to thank for it, as nearly 30 of the organization’s members turned out Monday morning ready to work.
- More Features Headlines
-
