Weight Management: Fruits and Vegetables That Help Provided Courtesy of Nutrition411.com Review Date 7/14 G-1293 Contributed by Shawna Gornick-Ilagan, MS, RD, CWPC, CHES Updated by Nutrition411.com staff

Weight Management To lose weight, you must eat fewer calories than your body uses You can lose weight by eating the same amount of food by adding low-calorie fruits and vegetables in place of higher-calorie ingredients As people become less active, their bodies need fewer calories, so even if you do not need to lose weight, you still may need to reduce your calories

Benefits of Fruits and Vegetables Naturally low in calories, fat, and sodium Source of essential vitamins and minerals Many are filled with antioxidants, fiber, and other components that are beneficial for health Eating fruits and vegetables may reduce risk of some types of cancer and other chronic diseases

Substitute spinach, onions, and mushrooms for one of the eggs or one-half of the cheese in an omelet Cut back on the amount of cereal in your bowl to make room for some bananas, peaches, blueberries, or strawberries Make a yogurt parfait with vanilla yogurt, lots of fruit, and a little dry breakfast cereal Lighten Up Your Breakfast

Lighten Up Your Lunch Substitute vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, or onions for some of the meat and cheese on your sandwich

Lighten Up Your Lunch (cont’d) Add 1 cup (C) of chopped vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, beans, or red peppers in place of meat or noodles in your favorite broth-based soup

Lighten Up Your Dinner Instead of having one-half of a plate of pasta, have one-fourth of a plate of pasta and one-half of a plate of vegetables such as: –Green-leafy vegetables –Cucumbers –Celery –Radishes –Green beans –Beets –Mushrooms

De-Lite-Ful Dinner Add 1 C of chopped vegetables such as broccoli, tomatoes, squash, onions, or peppers, and remove 1 C of rice or pasta from your favorite dish

595 Calories Bacon cheeseburger Source: Food search. CalorieKing.com website. Accessed July 10,

540 Calories Roast turkey breast (3 ounces [oz]) on whole-wheat bread with low-fat cheese (1 slice) Lettuce and tomatoes Apple Celery sticks Vegetable soup (1 C) Water with lemon slice Source: Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, release 26. National Agricultural Library, US Dept of Agriculture website. Accessed July 10,

500 Calories Spaghetti (¾ C) with cheese sauce (¾ C) Source: Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, release 26. National Agricultural Library, US Dept of Agriculture website. Accessed July 10,

550 Calories 1 C whole-wheat spaghetti with 1 C fat-free spaghetti sauce, topped with 1 C vegetables (broccoli, sweet bell peppers, onions, and zucchini) Strawberries (1½ C), topped with fat-free vanilla yogurt (½ C) Side salad with 1 tablespoon (Tbsp) fat-free dressing Water with lemon slice Whole-grain roll Source: Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, release 26. National Agricultural Library, US Dept of Agriculture website. Accessed July 10,

Lighten Up Your Snacks Medium-size apple=95 calories Medium-size banana=105 calories 1 C steamed green beans=31 calories 1 C blueberries=84 calories 1 C grapes=104 calories 2 Tbsp hummus=50 calories, served with: –1 C carrots=52 calories –1 C broccoli=31 calories –1 C bell peppers=18 calories Source: Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, release 26. National Agricultural Library, US Dept of Agriculture website. Accessed July 10,

Spice Up Your Fruits and Vegetables Eat fruits and vegetables the way nature provided or with fat-free or low-fat cooking techniques: –Adding herbs and spices –Cooking in reduced-sodium broth –Using low-fat dressings

Eat More Food for the Same Amount of Calories For 150 calories, instead of one can of soda pop or 16 potato chips, you can have: 15 large stalks of celery 4½ green peppers 5 large cucumbers 3¾ C of cooked spinach 1½ cans of beets 2 cans of green beans 1½ heads of Romaine lettuce 1 medium head of cauliflower 1 medium baked potato Source: Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, release 26. National Agricultural Library, US Dept of Agriculture website. Accessed July 10,

Is It Really More Expensive to Eat Healthy?

Easy Recipe: Cucumber Salad Peel and slice a cucumber and add 2 Tbsp of lite mayonnaise and pepper to taste Or peel and slice a cucumber, then add ½ C lite sour cream, 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar, pepper to taste, and a small amount of sugar to taste Optional: Add small, sliced pieces of onion

Easy Recipe: Green Bean Delight Combine one can of green beans with I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! ® Spray and some garlic powder, basil, oregano, and/or other spice If this gets boring, sprinkle with mozzarella or Parmesan cheese, sliced almonds, black olives, and/or some crunched-up crackers

Easy Recipes Cut up a tomato and add fat-free Italian dressing and chunks of low-fat mozzarella cheese Grill or roast peppers, onions, tomatoes, and potatoes, then sprinkle with Italian seasoning or other herbs and spices Buy a pizza crust mix (or make your own) and top it with tomato sauce, then top the pizza with lots of vegetables, cheese, and whatever meat your family enjoys

References Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, release 26. National Agricultural Library, US Dept of Agriculture Web site. Accessed July 10, Food search. CalorieKing Web site. Accessed July 10,

References (cont’d) National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity. Can eating fruits and vegetables help people to manage their weight? Dept of Health & Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. titioner_10_07.pdf. Accessed June 27, titioner_10_07.pdf

References (cont’d) National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity. How to use fruits and vegetables to help manage your weight. Dept of Health & Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. A-Day.pdf. Accessed June 27, A-Day.pdf Mayo Clinic staff. Weight loss: feel full on fewer calories. Mayo Clinic website. Published March 4, Accessed June 27,