Green leafy vegetables are good for eyesight

Dark green leafy vegetables contain two pigments, lutein and zeaxanthin, that accumulate in the eye. They appear to be able to snuff out free radical damage which are generated by sunlight, cigarette smoke, air pollution, infection and metabolism before it harms the eye’s sensitive tissues.

A number of study show that people who regularly eat dark green leafy vegetables like spinach, kale, and collard greens are less likely to develop two common aging related eye disease, cataract and macular degeneration.

Both lutein and zeaxanthin seem to reduce oxidative damage and protect tissues via a two step process. First, both of thess carotenoids are absorbed from the diet into the bloodstream and eventually end up concentrated specifically in the eye and the skin.

Next, the high levels of these carotenoids in these tissues serve to promote the tissues by minimizing free-radical damage and by absorbing harmful blue-light rays.

Meso-zeaxanthin and zeaxanthin are the predominant carotenoids in the foveal region, whereas lutein predominates in the parafoveal region.
Green leafy vegetables are good for eyesight

Food sources of vitamin K

Food sources of vitamin K Vitamin K functions as a coenzyme during the synthesis of the biologically active form of a number of proteins involved in blood coagulation and bone metabolism.

Largest food sources of vitamin K are leafy green vegetables and some oils. Kale, green tea, turnip green, and collard greens are the most abundant food sources.

Kale

Spinach, broccoli, lettuce, and cabbage are also rich sources. Other food sources include egg yolk, cow’s milk and liver as well as soybean oil, olive oil, cotton seed oil and canola oil.

Breads, rice and pastas are poor sources of vitamin K unless formulated with vegetable oils. Addition to fats and oils to mixed dishes is a significant source of vitamin K1.

With the recommended amount for men being 120 mcg per day, many foods have more than that in just one strong. For example, a one cup serving of cooked broccoli has 220 mcg and a one cup cups serving of raw kale has 547 mcg.
Food sources of vitamin K

Nutritional benefits of fruit and vegetable to children

Healthy diets in childhood are important as they shape food preferences and eating habits in later life and protect against early manifestations of nutrition related diseases.

Fruits and vegetables provide essential vitamins, minerals, fiber and disease-preventing phytochemicals. When children do not eat enough fruits and vegetables they run the risk of having low intakes of vitamins A and C.

B complex vitamins: thiamin, niacin, riboflavin and other B vitamin, come from a variety of foods, including grain products, meat and meat substitutes and dairy products.

The healthful benefits of fruits and vegetables, including protection against overweight and decreased risk of chronic disease, make increasing fruits and vegetables consumption in children an important public health issue.

Evidence from the Bogalusa Heart Study, tracking early risk of heart disease among American children, suggest that eating habits in childhood have a potential lifelong effect on cholesterol level and on adult coronary heart disease.

Vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients help create the neurotransmitter that relay signals between these brain children who do not get adequate nutrition in their first few years of life are more likely to have problems throughout life.

A study of British school children found that children who ate fruit more than once per day had better lung function compared with those who did not.

Although five servings a day of fruits and vegetables is the standard recommendation, the more the children eat the better.
Nutritional benefits of fruit and vegetable to children

Vegetables good for kids

The healthful benefits of fruits and vegetable, including protection against overweight and decreased risk of chronic disease, make increasing fruit and vegetables consumption in children an important public health issue.

In case children refuse to eat vegetables, parent should explain how vegetable is good for him.

Parent can promote vegetable by:
*Keep cleaned raw vegetables in the refrigerator for convenient snacks
*Offer a variety of vegetables, new ones along with familiar ones, and let the child help select and prepare them
*Children learn their eating habits at a very young age, age 2 or even younger. From the time they can eat solid or even semi solid food, they should be given choices of vegetables.
*Children love to fell that they have power. Let children select the vegetable at grocery store that they and parent will eat. It’s a good way to encourage consumption.
*Involve them planting and tending a vegetable garden
*Parents must set good examples in order for children to take them seriously.

Raw and quickly cooked vegetables are important for good nutrition, since long cooking at high temperature partially destroys the vitamin content of most vegetables.
Vegetables good for kids

Chemical composition of vegetable

Vegetables are derived from various parts of plants and the term vegetable has through usage come to apply in a more narrow sense to these plants or parts of plants that are served raw or cooked as a part of the main course of meal.

The average water content of vegetables is about 88%, with an average carbohydrate content of approximately 9%, 2% proteins, 0.3% fat and 0.8% ashes.

Vegetables are also important sources of digestible and indigestible carbohydrate as well as of minerals and vitamins.

The main sugars found in vegetables are glucose, fructose and sucrose. In general, vegetables contain higher amount of polysaccharides.

Compositions of vegetables not only vary according to botanical variety, cultivation practices and weather, but change with the degree of maturity prior to harvest and the condition of ripeness, which is progressive after harvest and is further influenced by storage conditions.

In green leafy vegetables it is low in carbohydrate and energy but they are good sources of beta-carotene, calcium, riboflavin, folic acid, ascorbic acid, iron and vitamin K.

Moreover, the preparation of the vegetables for consumptions and the method for isolation of volatile compounds may change the volatile profile and key aroma compounds compared to nonprocessed vegetables.

Chemical composition of vegetable

Kids Should Eat vegetables

Food Nutrition
Many parents strive to ensure that their children eat vegetables. Some meet with complete success, others with very little success. Veggies contain many vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients that a body needs to main good health and energy. They help protect against the effect of aging and reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease.

If you want your child to eat vegetables, improve your own attitude towards eating them. Early in age, child tends to mimic either or both parents for almost everything. If you as a parent dislike any particular vegetable, your child will do the same.

How you eat and what you eat affects your child directly. If you want your child to eat something that you dislike, you have to make an attempt to eat it first and then encourage your child to try a spoonful or plateful of it. It is not easy to get children to like any new food the first time. Keep reintroducing them from time to time.

Some tricks of trade that you can try to get your child to eat vegetables.
*Blend vegetables in a blender and add them to spaghetti sauce or liven up any non-veg dish.
*Keep a plateful of green salad, either in raw or grated form.
You can toss up a salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, celery, lettuce, carrots, cabbage, onion, and radish and so on. You can have salads either at mealtime or in between meals, as a snack.
*While making sandwiches for lunch, add lettuce, tomato slice or carrots in between. Chicken, tuna or pasta salads taste great with dash of vegetables in it.
*If your child thrives on noodles, add boiled or lightly steamed vegetables to it.
*While making pizza, add chopped broccoli, spinach, etc in addition to other toppings.
*Vegetables with a dash of melted cheese added to soups changes the flavor altogether.
Food Nutrition
Source: articlecity