The Rainbow of Food
Nature has found a clever way to highlight the nutrients in foods: different nutrients actually impart different colours to the foods they’re in. A multi-coloured plate is visually attractive and tempting, but more important, it is healthy because each colour relates to different and specific health benefits. What are the benefits of the different colours? The following poster summarises the different health benefits associated with each colour.
Nutrients in Food
We are always encouraged to eat a healthy balanced diet. What is a balanced diet? It is one that includes all nutrients, in the right proportions according to our daily changing needs. A healthy diet must include carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, vitamins, minerals, water and a source of fibre. How can I check if food contains carbohydrates, proteins and fats? The following shows steps of how Biology students tested for the presence of these three nutrients during one of their Biology lessons:
Artificial Colour Additives in Food - Good or Bad?
Artificial food colours are chemical dyes used to colour food and drinks. The most widely used dyes are Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 – accounting for 90% of all dyes used. They contain carcinogens and may cause allergic reactions. Each year, about 15 million pounds of synthetic dyes go into the processed U.S. food supply.
(http://www.precisionnutrition.com/all-about-food-additives)
But are all food colouring additives bad for our health? If you would like to read more about this topic, below are two presentations prepared by 2 groups of Biology students.
A to Z of Naturally Coloured Food
We often read or hear that ideally our plate should be a rainbow of colours. Eating a variety of colourful food provides vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to nourish the body. Different coloured foods play different roles in the body. It is important to aim for at least three colours at every meal and two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables over the course of the day. The following presentation shows the alphabet in colourful food, together with some nutritional values.
Pigments in Beetroots
How can we obtain pigments from food? Is it by simple diffusion?
The Meaning of Colours in our Diet
“Eat a rainbow of colours often,” Core Performance founder Mark Verstegen is fond of saying.
Eating a variety of colourful food provides vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to nourish your body that can’t be replicated in a supplement.
Different coloured foods play different roles in the body. Aim for at least three colours at every meal and two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables over the course of the day.
“Every meal should include colorful fruits and vegetables because of their fiber and nutrient densities,” says Verstegen. “Proteins and carbs will most likely be brown, beige, or white. Add veggies like red and green peppers, carrots, and green beans to get your color quotient up.”
http://www.coreperformance.com/knowledge/nutrition/eat-colorful-foods-for-better-health.html
Cherise and Julia's task was to research the benefits of the main colours found in food. They also took photos of their lunch or dinner plates, to analyse the colours found in their diet. Are they eating the rainbow of colours as suggested by Mark Verstegen?
Colourful Foods for Better Health
A presentation by Maria Pia Micallef & her team
Why are some bell peppers green, while others are red, orange or yellow?
A poster by Jody Morris & Sarah Galea
Creating Art through Fruit was a final activity worked in individual teams as part of an inhouse competition. The aim was to make the students aware of the importance of including colour in our diet, in terms of the different nutrients involved. Through this activity students also used their creativity in terms of art work. Follow this link to see the final art work created.
Art work by Cherise, Julia & Shanice