We all should know by now why we need to eat more fruits and vegetables.
But if  you still need some convincing, here are ten extremely good reasons to consider.
1. Eating fruits and vegetables protects you against heart disease
There is a direct correlation between low vegetable consumption and heart disease and the reason is that vegetables are the best natural source of antioxidants that there is. When the bad cholesterol, LDL, in your body oxidises, that is when it becomes dangerous and can cause heart disease. Eating more fruit and vegetables will bring the levels of antioxidants in your body back up the levels that are needed to fight oxidation of cholesterol.
2. Eating fruits and vegetables helps maintain the health of your eyes
There have been studies that have proven that eating some of the antioxidants in vegetables and fruit have a direct impact on the health of your eyes. Vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach and Brussels sprouts are a rich source of the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin, which are thought to lower the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration.
3. Eating fruits and vegetables boosts the immune system
Eating more vegetables will also boost your immune system and that means fewer coughs and colds and other ailments. Fruit and vegetables provide your body with a whole range of important vitamins and minerals, which keep your immune system in good working order. They also provide you with energy, which will also help you fight off illnesses.
4. Eating fruits and vegetables helps you maintain a healthy weight
Fruit and vegetables are very good for you when you are losing weight, or just trying to maintain a healthy weight. Despite the immense nutritional benefits of fruit and veggies, they are low in calories. They also help fill you up and that crowds out the unhealthy foods that you may have otherwise been tempted to eat.
5. Eating fruits and vegetables helps reduce the risk of diabetes
Eating more leafy green vegetables could reduce the risk of you developing diabetes. Although experts do say that more research is needed in this area, researchers at the University of Leicester in England carried out a study that found that people who ate about one and a half servings of green vegetables a day had a decreased risk if developing type 2 diabetes.
6. Eating fruits and vegetables removes toxins from the body
If you are not eating enough vegetables, your digestion will suffer and, was well as that causing uncomfortable constipation, it will also make your body less efficient at removing toxins.
Vegetables are very high in fibrous cellulose, which cleans the digestive tract and removes toxins from the body. It also helps to remove bile from the liver and, with it, excess cholesterol.
7. Eating fruits and vegetables helps to protect you against cancer
A diet that is rich in fruit and vegetables will also help to protect you against cancer. The World Health Organisation estimates that 50% of all of the avoidable forms of cancer in the western world occur as a result of a poor diet and any of those cancers can be avoided by eating more fruit and vegetables.
Fruit and vegetables contain antioxidants and vitamins A and C, which are all recognised as having the ability to protect you against cancer.
8. Eating fruits and vegetables balances the PH of your body
The overall health of your body is dependent on the PH balance and most people’s bodies are too acidic because of all the wrong kinds of food that we eat.
The optimum balance of PH in the body is two thirds alkaline and you can get to that balance by eating more fruit and vegetables. Keeping the body alkalised keeps the lymphatic system healthy and it helps to keep the blood healthy too,
9. Eating fruits and vegetables keeps your mind sharp
As well as keeping your body healthy, vegetables and fruit can also keep your mind sharp and improve your memory. People who eat plenty of fruit and vegetables have a low risk of developing age-related memory loss.
One study, conducted in 1999, even found that eating some fruits such as blueberries stimulates the growth of brain cells.
10. Eating fruits and vegetables provides essential minerals
Another failing with our modern diet is that we don’t get enough minerals. A healthy diet that includes plenty of vegetables will deliver all the essential minerals that your body needs, including some that can’t be obtained from any other source other than vegetables.
Minerals affect all aspects of your health, from the strength of your bones and teeth, to the proper functioning of your internal organs and your brain.