You've often heard it said that vegetables are great for the health, because of the vitamins, minerals and fiber they provide. There are also various studies proving that most vegetables have antioxidants that can protect the body from degenerative diseases such as cancer, heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
Another benefit of eating vegetables that some people may not know is that they can help you lose weight, and help you keep that weight off for as long as you continue consuming vegetables on a daily basis.
Daily Recommended Number of Vegetable Servings
As recommended by the USDA, women should consume about 2 1/2 cups of vegetables daily, while men should eat about 2/12 to 3 cups daily. It would, however, depend on the person's age and whether his or her lifestyle is active or not.
Those who perform more demanding physical activities would have to consume more, but should take caution not to exceed the daily requirements that much.
Choose Vegetables For Easy Fat Loss
Vegetables can help you get rid of fat faster because they usually give a few calories only per serving. For example, a cup of broccoli will give you only about 40 calories, while a cup of chopped celery only has 16 calories. Beware though, of eating vegetables for salads and then pumping on the high calorie dressing. Instead of using mayonnaise, try using a vinaigrette mix of olive oil and balsamic vinegar - tasty and low fat, too!
Cooking Vegetables
When cooking vegetables, it is healthier to do so with their skins, because the leaves and the skins provide the largest amount of vitamins and other nutrients. To choose the best of vegetables, select fresh ones. When buying leafy vegetables, go for dark leaves, as they are the ones with the highest nutritional content.
Do not overcook your vegetables. As much as possible, serve them right after cooking, as they can lose some of their nutrients if refrigerated.
Eating plenty of vegetable can help you keep off those unwanted pounds and gain the benefits from a healthy diet. There are websites you can visit for tasty, low calorie vegetable recipes that can help you and your family enjoy vegetables in many ways.
