Color to your diet could help prevent cancer

More richly colored vegetables pack more protective ingredients.

04/03/05 The jury may be out on whether a low-carb diet is the best way to lose weight. But moderating the carbohydrates you eat could help prevent cancer.

“It’s very clear for all the top cancers that diet has an influence on your risk of getting cancers,” says Mack Ruffin, M.D., M.P.H., professor of family medicine at the University of Michigan Health System and a member of the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center.

If your dinner plate is filled with all-white, starchy foods, take note: Not only is the food plain, but it has fewer cancer-fighting vitamins and minerals and is loaded with calories.

Ruffin suggests bringing color to the dinner table through vegetables and fruits in the yellow, green, red and orange families. Fruits and vegetables contain thousands of micronutrients, which are vitamins and minerals from the plants. These micronutrients have an antioxidant effect, reducing the amount of chemicals produced in the body. The nutrients – including vitamins A, B and E, carotenoids, selenium and calcium – work individually and together to protect your body.

The more richly colored vegetables pack more protective ingredients. So mashed potatoes won’t cut it. Look for spinach, broccoli, carrots and deep-hued berries such as blueberries or strawberries.

Since obesity is linked to a higher risk of cancer, controlling calories is key. A plant-based diet, filled with fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes, will also help control weight, as well as prevent heart disease and diabetes. Ruffin suggests including moderate physical activity in your daily routine as well.

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