Smart Food Choices
Your guide to optimal nutrition and disease prevention
When choosing your daily menu, consider the following:
⭐ Healthiest Food Items ("Super Foods")
Tart Cherries
Anti-inflammatory powerhouse
Red Grapes
Rich in resveratrol
Tomatoes
Lycopene for heart health
Blueberries
Brain-boosting antioxidants
Strawberries
Vitamin C champions
Oatmeal
Heart-healthy fiber
Spinach
Iron and folate rich
Nuts
Healthy fats & protein
Avocado
Monounsaturated fats
Oily Fish
Omega-3 fatty acids
Dark Chocolate
Raw, antioxidant-rich
🥗 The Ultimate Salad Building Guide
✅ Smart Salad Choices
Choose darker salads to build a vitamin- and fiber-packed foundation by delivering more than half of your daily vitamin A and all of your vitamin K, plus folate and vitamin C.
🥬 Spinach 🥬 Kale 🥬 Arugula 🥬 Romaine
❌ Poor Choices
Lighter greens tend to offer less nutrition. Iceberg lettuce, for instance, delivers only about 7% of the vitamin A you need, some vitamin K, and not much else.
🥬 Iceberg lettuce 🥬 Pale lettuce
Good-for-You Salad Toppings
✅ Smart Choices
- 🌰 1 tbsp walnuts or sunflower seeds - heart-healthy fats that help absorb nutrients
- 🧀 1 tbsp Parmesan - if craving cheese, stick to small amounts
❌ Avoid
- Cheddar cubes - you'll quickly eat more than needed
- Croutons & crunchy Asian noodles - 100 cal per ¼ cup, high in refined carbs, sodium, trans fats
Salad Dressings
✅ Smart Choice
Mix your own simple vinaigrette with heart-healthy olive oil, vinegar, mustard and a grating of pepper.
❌ Poor Choices
Skip ready-made salad dressings. Even low-fat or fat-free versions are usually loaded with salt, sugar, and unhealthy additives.
🌈 The Best Vegetables: Color is Key
Bright Veggies Rule!
Colorful vegetables provide more fiber, minerals, vitamins, and disease-fighting antioxidants than their paler companions.
🌟 Choose These:
- 🥦 Broccoli
- 🥕 Carrots
- 🍅 Cherry tomatoes
- 🫑 Green & red bell peppers
- 🟣 Beets
😐 Less Nutritious:
- 🥒 Celery
- 🥒 Cucumbers
- (Paler vegetables have fewer nutrients)
💪 Smart Protein Choices
✅ Choose Lean Proteins
🫘 Legumes
Chickpeas and kidney beans are great sources of fat-free protein (6 grams each)
🥚 Eggs
Sliced hard-boiled eggs are smart - just limit the yolk to control fat
❌ Poor Choices
🥪 Ready-made Salads
Chicken, tuna or crab salads are usually made with high-fat mayo
🫘 Three-bean Salads
Typically swimming in oil; full-fat cottage cheese is high in saturated fat
🍓 Healthy Desserts
✅ Smart Choices
🍎 Fresh Fruit Mix
Mix healthy fruits like melons, apple, berries, pineapple, kiwi
Top with: 1-2 tbsp chopped walnuts or sunflower seeds for healthy fats and crunch
Add protein: Low or non-fat yogurt or cottage cheese
❌ Poor Choices
🥫 Canned Fruits
Syrupy canned peaches, apricots, pears, etc. have far more calories and fewer nutrients than fresh fruit.
🎯 Personalized Nutrition
Ready to take your nutrition to the next level?
Discover Food Benefits for Your Health ProfileIdentify the health benefits of different fruits and vegetables to choose those that support your specific health needs.
Medical & Legal Disclaimer: The above provides a general overview on this topic and may not apply to everyone. Any treatment protocol should be discussed with a qualified healthcare practitioner. GreenAndHealthy.Info strives to maintain accurate and up-to-date information; however, mistakes do happen.