5 A Day the Color Way Blue/Purple

By Fae Aldrich

July 9, 2004

Today's color: Blue/Purple. Making blue/purple fruits and vegetables part of your low-fat diet helps maintain a lower risk of some cancers, urinary tract health, memory function, and healthy aging. Blue/purple fruits and vegetables contain varying amounts of health-promoting phytochemicals currently being studied for their antioxidant and anti-aging benefits. Get blue/purple every day with foods such as: blackberries, blueberries, black currants, dried plums, purple figs, purple grapes, plums, raisins, purple cabbage, eggplant, elderberries, and a few I am not familiar with: purple carrots, purple Belgian endive, purple peppers, black salsify, and purple asparagus. Maybe you are familiar with the last few items, so it's a good reminder.

Besides eating your purple fruits and vegetables raw (freshly washed, of course), you can mix up a delicious purple cabbage coleslaw, or how about Eggplant Parmesan using: 3 cups of Marinara Sauce, 1 eggplant, sliced 1/2 inch thick, and 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese. Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Steam the eggplant slices or roll in flour and broil for 3 minutes on each side. Place in a casserole dish and cover with Marinara sauce. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Heat in oven for about 20 minutes or until bubbly. Serves 6. In addition to the benefits of "blue/purple", this recipe also contains the phytonutrient, lycopene, (the tomatoes in the marinara sauce) which reduces the risk of prostate, breast, skin cancer, and reduces the risk of heart attacks.

It's all about color - blue/purple, green, white, yellow/orange, and red and the power of colorful fruits and vegetables to promote good health. So when you're grocery shopping, planning your meals, or dining out, think color.

Growing old isn't what it once was. I’m thankful for that! It wasn't all that long ago when people were considered old at 60. Not anymore. Not only are we changing our definition of old, but we also have higher expectations for how we want to be and feel in our later years. We want to learn to be in charge of our health. Many problems of aging are, in fact, infirmities that could be avoided if people would only be more active, eat nutritiously, and drink more water.

How much exercise is enough? Try keeping it simple. Aim for 3-5 planned 40-minute workouts. Then try to stay spontaneous by getting more active during the day. Take a walking break; use the stairs, park in the back of the parking lot. Stretch, move, jog in place, get busy outside.

Consistency is the most important part. Try this - 30 minutes of "intentional" exercise. "Intentional" exercise means the little extra exercise you are doing for yourself outside of your normal routine. If you still feel you just can't devote 30 minutes at one time, do it in 5 or 6-minute spurts throughout your day. Exercise will help you maintain a healthy body weight, keep you from being so grouchy, give you more energy, and lays the groundwork for healthy aging.

Future plans: July 15th - 10K/5A Day 16-week long wellness program will again be offered in the Cheyenne County and Kiowa County communities. 10K, in this instance, refers to taking 10,000 steps per day. You will probably find that you have to hustle to get in 10,000 steps per day, but ANY change in your daily routine will be of benefit to you--and that is the whole idea!! And to help you get in your 10,000 steps, we are organizing a "Walk 'n Talk" group to meet one day per week. There will be a short 2-5 minute talk at the beginning, and then we will "walk 'n talk". It will be a win/win situation for all who participate. Virtually everyone would benefit by participating in some form of moderate-intensity physical activity for an accumulated 30 minutes or more almost daily. The part that 10K/5A Day will play will include giving each participant a pedometer. If you are interested as an individual, work-place group, or an organization, please consider calling us Cheyenne Public Health, 719-767-5616 or visit our web site www.10k5aday.com. Now is the time to speak up and make your wishes known, while we are in the planning stages.

Here's wishing you the best of health.