Food Facts

Plants have played a very significant role in health promotion and in medicine throughout history. For centuries men and women have used various plants for relief of certain illnesses, and used various foods to protect themselves against a variety of diseases and disorders. Two famous Egyptian documents; the Hearst papyrus and Ebers papyrus, written about 1500 B.C. mention a number of plants that were used at that time in a medicinal fashion. The list included such plants as barley, figs, garlic, olives, onions, pomegranates and others.

The world health organisation recommends that optimal diet for each one of us is a low fat, high fibre diet rich in complex carbohydrates characterised by a frequent consumption of fruits and vegetables, whole- grain cereals and legumes. This diet should include at least 400 grams of fruits and vegetables a day including 30 grams of legumes nuts and seeds. The international food committee on food nutrition and prevention of cancer recommended choosing a predominantly plant based diet rich in variety of fruits and vegetables legumes and minimally processed starchy staple foods, such as grains roots and tubers.

A large number of research studies have recently shown that a diet rich in the vitamin antioxidants, (vitamins C & E and the carotenoids) is associated with improved health with a lower risk of coronary heart disease and cancer. In addition to these antioxidants, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, legumes and various herbs (such as garlic, onions, rosemary, basil, cilantro, oregano, thyme, cumin, dill, tumeric and tarragon) are well-endowed with a variety of phytochemicals that are important in both health promotion and disease prevention. The phytochemicals may act as antioxidants, stimulate the immune system, induce protective enzymes in the liver or block damage to genetic material .

Citrus fruits, vegetables of the cabbage family, the carrot family and the yellow-orange coloured fruits and vegetables are especially well known to be rich in certain phytochemicals that protect us against cancer. In addition soybeans are unique in their content of isoflavones, such as genestein, which can inhibit blood clots, lower cholesterol levels and inhibit prostate and breast cancer. Fruits and vegetables are especially rich in potassium and thereby help lower blood pressure and substantially reduce the risk of stroke. Finally, nuts legumes fruits and grains (such as oatmeal) and plant-based diets in general are reported to lower blood cholesterol levels and hence the risk of coronary heart disease.

Each and every one of us could enjoy better health and a higher quality of life if we selected our food from a wide variety of plant food.

Winston J. Craig,
P.h.D., R.D.
Professor of Nutrition
Andrews University
(Michigan, USA)