Ask Dr. Cheryl

Topics discussed in this episode:

• The greatest nutrient deficiency among Americans (0:23)
• My goal for the 20 point health score (1:30)
• What are antioxidants and where can you find them? (2:02)
• How to build meals that meet the daily requirements for fruits and vegetables (5:05)
• The problem with antioxidant supplements (7:18)

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Transcript:  

What is the greatest nutrient deficiency in the American diet? Hi, I'm doctor Cheryl, and welcome to the Doctor, Cheryl Wellness Podcast, where together we'll learn how food can be your comfort and your cure. I'm a doctor of Clinical Nutrition who created a proven 20 point nutrition and lifestyle score that can add 10 healthy years to your life and even better, help you feel great today.

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So what is the greatest nutrition deficiency in the American diet? Fruits and vegetables. The USDA reports that fruit and vegetable consumption for the average person in America is less than One Cup of fruit daily and 1.4 cups of vegetables every day. And that's counting potatoes, French fries and ketchup as vegetables. And it's counting fruit juice for a fruit. So still the average American isn't getting 1 cup of fruit and 1.4 cups of vegetables every day. The US Dietary Goal is 5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, and the American Heart Association recommends 4 to 5 servings. The CDC reports that only one in 10 adults actually reached the recommendation for four to five servings of fruits and vegetables every day. So fruits and vegetables are the number one nutrient deficiency in America. I learned about this in my 20s. And it really drove me to my entire career to feel like something. That was a nutrition deficiency in America. Could be so simply solved. And it felt like if we could get this information out there, we could make a difference. And that's still my goal today is how can we get Americans and everyone to eat more fruits and vegetables every day? And today we'll talk about that.

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So what can we do to make this happen here at Doctor Cheryl Wellness, we build meals with two cups or more of fruits. And vegetables in every meal for a daily total of 6 or more cups. And if you get a 20 on the score, you're guaranteed to be getting all the fruits and vegetables you need to get the proven health benefits. Why are fruits and vegetables so important anyway? Have you heard about the power of antioxidants? Well, fruits and vegetables are full of them. Antioxidants are this tiny magic ingredient that improves overall health. And longevity significantly and we're going to look at these antioxidants and find out where they're found and why they're so beneficial to our health. But first, what exactly is an antioxidant?

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Antioxidants are molecules in our body, and they're found in plant based foods that counteract oxidative stress and oxidative stress occurs when there's an imbalance between the production of cell damaging free radicals and our bodies ability to counter these harmful effects of free radicals. Well, what's a free radical? It's a byproduct of a normal metabolism and in response to exercise, overexposure to sun and environmental pollutants like smog and cigarette smoke, free radicals can be measured in our blood and trigger oxidative stress, which is damaging to the healthy cells in our body. That damage increases inflammation. And over the years, sets us up for a variety of diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Well, it's impossible to completely avoid free radicals. We do want to limit and combat them. That's where the antioxidants come in. Antioxidants essentially serve as bodyguards to protect the body's healthy cells from these free radicals. They help maintain proper physiological function protect our DNA. They support our immune function and guard our overall health and well-being so we can live younger longer. Sounds great, right? So how do we get antioxidants in our body to fight disease, combat aging and reduce our free radicals? There are hundreds, if not thousands of substances that act as antioxidants from vitamin C to flavonoids to polyphenols, which are all found in a wide range of plant based foods. So they're easy to come by. Some of the top sources of antioxidants are berries, pomegranates, hibiscus, grapes. Citrus fruits broccoli, which is a cruciferous vegetable, dark leafy greens, apples, beans, whole grains, avocados, nuts and seeds. Even coffee, tea and cocoa, along with herbs and spices like curry and turmeric, are loaded with antioxidants. There's a lot of ways to increase antioxidants in your body. Want to take it a step further and get the best of antioxidants take in a broader spectrum of food. A lot of dietitians say, eat from the rainbow. It's all about eating a variety of foods that are different colors, and this is a great way to make sure you're getting a broad spectrum of the protective antioxidants in your diet. Diversifying your antioxidant sources also comes with added health benefits. Whole plant foods have different colors come with their own benefits, like being naturally packed with vitamins, minerals and whole carb fiber.

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I recommend that you build meals that start with two cups of fruits and vegetables and aim for that daily dose of 6 cups of fruits and vegetables. An example of how to do this is 1 cup of fruit and 1 cup of veggies at breakfast, two cups of veggies at lunch and dinner, and then another cup of fruit for a healthy dessert or snack throughout your day. You can also boost your antioxidants by trading up processed foods with whole plant based foods. For example, trade up your breakfast pastry. Or a bowl of oats topped with fruit and nuts, or a smoothie that's loaded with veggies and fruit and protein boosted with nuts. You can even add essential plant fats with flax or chia seeds to add even more antioxidants and help. Benefits trade up a sandwich or a wrap and go for a bowl made with beans and brown rice or quinoa topped with generous greens and veggies and seasoned with hummus or guacamole. Trade up a processed snack by snacking on fruit with nuts or seeds or veggies with hummus. Satisfy your sweet tooth by trading up dark chocolate instead of ice cream or processed candy. Trade up your daily habits by sprinkling cinnamon into your morning coffee and infusing water or tea with antioxidant rich herbs and bits of fruit.

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Maybe you heard of the saying everything in moderation. That rule you can never have too many antioxidants from whole food sources. Plus, choosing antioxidant rich foods can elevate the overall nutrition quality of your entire diet and give you other benefits, some of which I talk about in other episodes of this podcast. The bottom line is that whole plant foods are healing. In a lot of different ways. Pharmaceutical companies and supplement companies are chasing for that magic pill that can do what antioxidants in whole foods can do. The more we learn about antioxidants, the evidence shows powerful anti aging effects and a major ability to improve overall health and well-being. This is the hunt that the drug companies are on. They are trying to find a way to package the power of the antioxidants into a little pill to sell us. And many have tried and you may have heard of or even be taking some of these supplements that promise antioxidants. The problem that some are concerned about is with antioxidant supplements. They're very processed and is there going to be a problem with getting too many antioxidants in that form? Which could potentially be harmful. So while we can never eat too many antioxidants, so the process of making a supplement full of antioxidants, concentrated antioxidants could be harmful. While this leads many experts to believe that supplementation of high dose antioxidants are not the best way to protect your body. Many studies have shown no health improvements or even harmful effects in taking high dose antioxidant supplements compared to consuming the whole food source. The best way to consume our antioxidants is from an abundant amount of whole plant based. This is partly because antioxidants were considered by with one another and with other bio active compounds. In other words, they're one ingredient in a complex recipe for health protection. The path to the healthiest diet is to eat as many antioxidants as possible through whole plant foods. Not add another supplement to your daily routine. Here's the bottom line on antioxidants. They're an important part of proactive nutrition, and they can help us fend off aging and chronic disease. They help you look good. They help you feel good. But antioxidants aren't meant to be a cure all. And taking antioxidant supplements to treat a medical condition without the supervision of your doctor, is not the answer. To get the most out of antioxidants, powerful benefits - source them from whole plant foods or products made with whole food ingredients. That's also the most delicious and satisfying way to get your daily dose of these colorful, delicious nutrients.

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So how much is that daily dose? Two cups is the ideal amount of fruits and vegetables to have at breakfast to have at lunch and dinner for a daily total of 6 cups. Eating this much will provide the right amount of antioxidants that your body needs to counteract the harmful effects from the oxidative stress and the cell damaging free radicals that we talked about before. Remember, you can't completely avoid antioxidant stress and free radicals, so the best thing you can do is eat a daily dose of antioxidants. My score is 20 points. Twelve of these are totally dedicated to what we eat and drink. Those 12 points provide a daily dose of antioxidants which are a key way for us to boost our health daily.

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Are you loading your plate with whole plant foods and feeling the improvements of more antioxidants in your body? Take your score at drcherylwellness.com and see if you'd get points for antioxidant rich foods. Every recipe on DrCherylWellness.com was crafted to ensure that you get your six cups of fruits and vegetables every day. For reference and links to everything I mentioned in today's episodes, please check out the show notes for today's episode. Ready for Personalized Nutrition? Become a member today. See you on the inside. Thank you for listening to the Doctor Cheryl Wellness podcast. Will learn how food can be your comfort and your cure.