Vegetables Nutrition And Health Benefits

Submitted by Serena Mason on February 3, 2010

Magical Properties Of Vegetables And Vegetable Nutrients

A number of the ailments we suffer from have their origin in our diet. Either directly or indirectly, many modern diseases are the result of nutritional deficiencies. In most cases, the nutrients that we are deficient in can be found in vegetables – it is our poor intake of vegetables and our reliance on junk food and other processed food that damages our health. Fortunately, in many cases, simply increasing one’s daily intake of vegetables can solve these problems, as long as they have not been ignored for too long. In this sense, vegetables have a strong curative value –diseases that are caused by inadequate intake of vegetables can often be cured simply by bringing your vegetable intake up to a healthy level.

This is often the case with disorders of the digestive system.

Problems such as chronic constipation, chronic diarrhea, hemorrhoids, and so on can often be solved simply by having a healthy amount of fiber in your diet. Of course, the best source of fiber is vegetables. Legumes are particularly high in fiber, and so are broccoli, carrots, and onions.

Potatoes and sweet potatoes are also rich in fiber, as long as you eat the skin too. Of course, not all these foods are considered “vegetables” in the strictest sense, but nonetheless their nutritional value is too great to exclude them.

Vegetables Antiviral Properties

For some diseases, a vegetarian diet is an extremely important part of recovery and maintenance of health.

Diseases such as gout tend to be lifestyle diseases, and factors such as meat consumption can play a role in the development of the disease, or at least in aggravating it. In such cases, simply sticking to a vegetarian diet can bring the disease under control, thus eliminating the need for medical treatment, or at least minimizing it. Problems with cholesterol and blood sugar can also be controlled to some extent by having a healthy intake of vegetables.

This is because the fiber in vegetables seems to influence the absorption and elimination of cholesterol and sugar. Obesity and health problems relating to obesity can also be treated by a healthy intake of vegetables, or, if necessary, a purely vegetarian diet.

Of course, it is important to remember that balance is essential, in diet as in all other aspects of life. There are several nutrients that are not found in adequate quantities in plant foods. It has been often been noted that higher life expectancy among vegetarians is often due to the fact that these people also tend to avoid smoking and alcohol, rather than because they avoid meat and fish. Rather than going to one extreme or the other, it may therefore be beneficial to simply have a varied, balanced diet.