articles

Eat the Rainbow: 5 Colors to Eat!

By Lisa Audy - ClubSport Certified Nutritionist January 4, 2018

What makes a rainbow so beautiful? The bright vivid colors are what most people would say! Did you know that some of the best nutrition can be found in foods whose colors look a lot like what you see in a rainbow? Red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple…

Eating a rainbow of colorful food helps your body get a complete range of nutrients. Nutrients are vitamins and minerals that are important because they help your body work to be the very best it can be! They help you grow strong and can keep you from getting sick. Sugary snacks and drinks don’t provide the important nutrients or fiber for your body to function properly.

Fiber is a natural part of plant foods and it helps keep your body's system clean and running smoothly. It comes from things like the skin and seeds of fruits and vegetables, or the outer kernel of a piece of rice. There are two kinds of fiber - soluble and insoluble, and both are very important.

You’ll know a certain food is a healthy choice if it looks colorful and fresh as if it was just plucked from the ground or picked from a tree (some candy is colorful, but that doesn't count!).

The color of your food can tell you a lot about its nutritional value. Take a look at some of the amazing things fresh, colorful fruits and vegetables can do for you:

  • Red fruits and veggies help keep your heart strong
  • Orange fruits and veggies help keep your eyes healthy
  • Yellow fruits and veggies help keep you from getting sick
  • Green fruits and veggies help make your bones and teeth strong
  • Blue and purple fruits and veggies help your memory


Rainbow Fruit Skewers with Yogurt Dip

  1. Choose your favorite fruits (berries, pineapple, kiwi, apples, oranges, etc.) and cut them into equal-size chunks.
  2. Thread them onto wooden skewers.
  3. Dip them in Greek yogurt sweetened with a little bit of raw honey.


Veggies and Hummus 

  • 1 can (400g / 14oz) cooked chickpeas [retain the liquid from the can]
  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp tahini
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • Optional to decorate: more chickpeas, paprika, and fresh herbs

Instructions

  1. Put all of the ingredients except the olive oil and liquid from the can in a blender and blitz until smooth. Drizzle in the oil a little at a time and continue to blend until it has all combined.
  2. If the hummus seems to be too thick, add a little of the retained chickpea liquid from the can.
  3. Serve with crudités such as carrots, cucumber, peppers, celery, and sugar snap peas.


Lisa Audy is a Certified Nutritionist at ClubSport Fremont in Fremont, CA.



LIKE THIS ARTICLESandy Springs Dunwoody Macaroni Kid is a free weekly newsletter and website focused on fun family events and information in Sandy Springs, Dunwoody, Chamblee, and Doraville. We gather together all kinds of local family events and activities each week and add useful information about classes, family-focused businesses, book and product reviews, recipes, crafts, school and camp guides and more. We proudly serve families in Sandy Springs, Dunwoody, Chamblee, and Doraville! Sandy Springs Dunwoody Macaroni Kid is full of useful local information like this PLUS tons of kid-friendly events on our event calendar. Have an event you'd like submitted to our calendar for consideration? Submit an event here. Like what you see here and want to get all the fun delivered to your inbox weekly? Subscribe to our FREE weekly e-newsletter for 411 on the local family fun.