Download Fruits! - Edmonds

Fruits
&
Fruits!
Veggies!
• Dietary Guidelines recommend a minimum
of __________ servings per day.
• Most Americans are not meeting this
recommendation!
 Some of the world’s most widespread and
debilitating nutritional disorders, including
birth defects, mental and physical
retardation, weakened immune
systems, blindness, and even death, are
caused by diets lacking in vitamins and
minerals.
 Low fruit and vegetable intake is a major
contributing factor to such micronutrient
deficiencies.
Why are fruits and vegetables so
indispensable?
• They are full of vitamins and minerals,
which serve an array of important
functions in the body:
• Vitamin A - maintains eye health and
boosts the body’s immunity to infectious
diseases
• Potassium - promotes proper nerve and
muscle functioning
• B-vitamins - necessary for converting
food into energy
• Folate - one of the most common Bvitamins found in produce, can also
significantly reduce the risk of neural tube
birth defects in newborns and contribute
to the prevention of heart disease
• Vitamin C - can increase the body’s
absorption of calcium (an essential
mineral for strong bones and teeth) and
iron from other foods
• Low iron levels can lead to anemia, one of
the most severe nutrition-related
disorders, affecting about 2 billion people
worldwide