Fruits and Veggies - You Know You Need Them But...

Are you eating enough fruit and vegetable servings on average in your day?

Most college students do not eat the recommended amount of fruit and vegetable daily but the good news is that a larger number of people in the U.S., including college students, are aware that they need to eat more fruit and vegetable everyday. Awareness is a great first step.

The picture at right is the Produce Patch (or fresh veggie/fruit area) of the Village Place & Market. Look at all that yummy produce!

What are you looking for when you are trying to increase your fruit and veggie intake?

• select fruits and veggies that you like - that way you'll be more inclined to actually eat them!
• but don't be afraid to try new things, of course - you never know what you might enjoy. What's my current veggie obsession? It's hearts of palm, which I honestly only eat at restaurants...but I love them nonetheless.
• choose organic when you can (lots of choices in Dining Services restaurants and Markets are organic - feel free to ask the chef or manager on duty for that info). Check out the "dirty dozen" from the EWG to know which fruits/veggies are more important to buy organic: http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/ On the flip side, maybe don't stress about the Clean 15 - those would be less important to purchase organic since they tend to have the lowest pesticide residue according to the EWG.
• choose many different colors of fruits and veggies - basically the different hue coordinate with different nutrients. Choosing different colors helps you to get in a variety of nutrients.
• incorporate fruits and veggies into your meals to help you bump up your daily servings - for examples, slice a banana onto your toast and peanut butter in the morning or add steamed broccoli to that formerly boring bowl of dinnertime pasta.

And a final thought on fruits and veggies: although we learn new things everyday about nutrition, nutrients in our foods, the impact of farming practices and environmental changes on our food supply and more, NO ONE has ever said, "eat fewer fruits and veggies to be healthier" - that would just be crazy! So, it's an extremely consistent message: fresh produce and lightly cooked produce - GOOD FOR YOU.

What Should You Drink?

The photo here is of a few doors of the beverage refrigerators at the Village Place & Market in the Village East community. Look at all those choices! We are lucky in the U.S. to have so many options but sometimes those options for beverages (or gum, or bread, or pasta sauce or cheese or the millions of other things for which we have a zillion choices) can overwhelm us, making it hard to settle on a simple drink.

So what should you drink? Beverages quench our thirst, keep us hydrated and can provide nutrients. Beverages often provide too many calories and added sugars for many people in the U.S., which can contribute to weight gain. That doesn't mean that soda is evil - it does mean that you should know not to drink soda in large quantities, though.

Here are some beverages to include regularly:

• water
• non fat or lowfat milk or soy milk
• tea (hot or iced)

Here are some beverages that most people can derive some benefits from but should be consumed in small quantities:

• 100% juices (great nutrients, but most of us should aim to eat more whole fruits)
• coffee (has some health benefits; know your caffeine tolerance)
• artificially-sweetened, low-to-no calorie beverages (don't want to start a great debate about artificial sweeteners here but the real deal is this: it is better to be hydrated by an artificially-sweetened, low-to-no calorie beverage than to be dehydrated or drink excessive calories from a sugar-sweetened beverage and gaining weight)

Here are some drinks to consider "treats":

• regular soda
• fancy, high-calorie coffee drinks
• juice drinks

What do college students drink all the time that they really don't need and could be dangerous if consumed excessively?

• ok, yes, alcohol
• but I was really thinking of so-called "energy drinks" - Basically, energy drinks have unproven health claims, can make you jittery, can be dangerous when paired with alcohol and are generally unnecessary and unable to deliver on their promises. If you feel like you "need energy," don't look for an energy drink as a solution. Instead, evaluate your sleep habits, your eating habits, your stress management, your hydration status, and/or your medical status.
  

I'm off to get a glass of water!

Midterm Time: Fuel Your Brain with Fruits and Veggies

Many college students admit that they don't eat as many fruits and vegetables per day as they know that they should. Although it can be a challenge some days, eating enough fruits and vegetables is important in keeping you healthy, preventing illness and feeling your best.

Fruits and vegetables contain disease-fighting nutrients and phytochemicals as well as fiber and water for a healthy functioning digestive tract.

Try to eat a fruit or vegetable with every meal and include them in snacks as well. The picture to the right shows some of the fresh produce available at the Village Place & Market on North Campus.

You can get fresh fruits and veggies in every Place & Market and in every Dining restaurant. Try to eat a wide variety of fruits and veggies of many different colors to cover a broad range of nutrients.

Check out the produce colors at the new Village Place and Market!

The new Village Place & Market on North Campus is open!

Pictured at Right: the gorgeous colors of the fresh produce in the Village Place and Market's produce patch area.

March is National Nutrition Month and this year's theme is Eat Right With Color. The new Village Place & Market can help you fill your plate with a wide variety of colors - the whole concept is that naturally vibrant and colorful foods have different nutrients and the different colors often correspond to different nutrients.

The Village Place & Market Regular Hours:
Mon-Fri 7a-1a
Sat-Sun 9a-1a