Hola, amigos! Today is my third installment in the Color Me Healthful series and we’ll be talking about the white color family of fruits and vegetables. While white is typically the least used color in the Crayola box, this color family represents a bunch of important nutrients in our dietary intake. So let’s dive right in!
A quick recap: the Color Me Healthful system categorizes fruits and veggies based on, you know, color. And it should be stated, the color of the part you are actually consuming. In other words, bananas could fall under the yellow category; however, we don’t eat the peels. We eat the interiors, which are actually white. Canned and frozen produce still divide based on their color and it is important to remember that these processes sometimes increase the availability of certain nutrients (hello lycopene!).
Typically when we think of things in our diets that are white, we think bread, pasta, and all things white sugar. Fruits and veggies are not the first to come to mind. But if you think about it a bit more, a lot of our most consumed produce falls in the white color family. Bananas and pears are two fruits most of us eat on the daily. On the veggie side of things, how many recipes start with an onion or garlic? Both in the white family. And I don’t think I have to point out how many potatoes we eat. Throw in mushrooms and cauliflower, both of which are having a moment, and we’ve got a nice little round up.
Anthoxanthins are the phytochemicals responsible for the pale pigments in these fruits and veggies. Anthoxanthins are a class of flavonoid. Flavonoids are responsible for the growth and development of plants. Thanks to the complex set of reactions between sunlight, water, and soil nutrients that creates plant starches, plants exist in an environment full of free hydrogen ions. Which makes flavonoids excellent antioxidants. Like the kind that nutrition science gets all nerdy-excited about. And often makes the news, too.
If you re-read the list of fruits and veggies from above, you might come up with this next compound on your own. Potassium. This color family is famous for its association with potassium. The memo on bananas was sent, like, generations ago. But pears are also good sources, and did you know that white potatoes actually contain more potassium per serving than a banana?
Together the anthoxanthins and potassium are a pretty ridiculous team when it comes to heart health. Risk factors for cardiovascular disease, heart attack, and stroke all include high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol, and low HDL cholesterol. There are lots of things we can do to lower blood pressure and LDL cholesterol and eating white produce and beans certainly will help. HDL is the tougher nut to crack. Getting active is one way to raise that number. Eating fruits and veggies in this color family may also help.
The B complex vitamins are also common compounds found in white fruits and veggies. There are eight B vitamins, all of which are water soluble, meaning we need to consume the proper amount every day. The more important thing about the B vitamins, though, is that they are all critically important to our metabolism. Without boring you with a fairly advanced physiology lesson, the B vitamins allow us to break down our food (or fat stores) into usable energy. This usable energy allows us to grow, repair old cells, create new cells, and move. Basically B vitamins allow us to live our best lives.
Side note: I often make the recommendation to my students or clients after a tough workout to make sure they consume three things to aid their recovery. First, water. Hydration is everything, but that’s a post for another day. Second, protein. See my whole series dedicated to protein intake. Third, a banana, pear, or potato. You need B vitamins to break down that protein into building blocks and then rebuild the cells.
So you may not think of the most exciting foods when you think of the color white, but eating the fruits and veggies that fall in to this color family can help your body preform at its best. Next time, I’ll be chatting about the green color family and all it has to offer us nutritionally. But be sure to let us know in the comments what you favorite white veggie is!
Until next time, be well friends!
