By David Blyweiss, M.D., Advanced Natural Wellness

September 7, 2020

Do you remember getting a fresh new box of crayons as a kid?  You’d open up the cardboard container only to discover a beautiful wide variety of colors.  It was such a magical feeling.

Well, lately my views on eating have started to look more and more like that crayon box…

Don’t worry.  This isn’t a radical change.  I still strongly support the health benefits provided by the Mediterranean way of eating.  Only now, I’ve started to think more in terms of colors rather than just types of food.

I’m referring to a Rainbow Diet.

To understand how this works, I want you to think about the last meal you ate…

Let’s imagine you had a piece of roast beef with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy.  Then you added a thick slice of bread slathered in butter.  Yum!

But let me ask you, where’s the color in this meal?

You see, most of us eat a white, beige, and brown diet.  We eat things like meat, potatoes, bread, and rice.  Then, we’re proud if we manage to add on a plain lettuce salad soaked in ranch dressing.

There’s just one problem…

Your gut microbiome HATES this type of eating style. The good bacteria in your gut don’t want these bland types of foods. Instead they want the rich nutrient content found in foods that are red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and even purple!

As you may know, you can change the composition of your microbiome simply by changing the foods you eat.  So, the first step in developing a healthy set of microbes is to feed them the right types of colorful foods to help them thrive. Rainbow colored foods are the healthiest to eat because they contain targeted nutrients to keep your gut healthy.

Remember, whatever comes from the earth, goes into the plant, and then into us.  It’s a brilliant system.  And it all starts with good dirt, the right plant, water, and sunlight to make the foods we’re supposed to eat.

Do the Colors on Your Plate Make a Difference?

I actually have a good friend and colleague who’s written about this way of eating.  Her name is Deanna Minich and she wrote the book The Rainbow Diet: A Holistic Approach to Radiant Health Through Foods and Supplements.[1]

In this book she explains that when you focus on adding the colors of the rainbow to your dinner plate, you’ll enjoy a huge range of health benefits.

She’s made it her life’s work to educate as many people as she can on the importance of eating powerfully and living colorfully (not blandly!)

I’ve seen this diet work wonders with people suffering from disease.  In fact, two of my pancreatic cancer patients were only given about six months to live.  They were each able to resolve their cancer for more than a decade eating these colorful vegetables and fruits.

If you’re ready to brighten up your dinner plate, use this guide to pick out the right types of colorful foods:

RED: Choose red foods to help protect your body from prostate cancer and coronary heart disease.  The lycopene found in tomatoes (and tomato sauce) is a red-colored carotenoid which is especially helpful in fighting off chronic diseases.[2]

Try to eat: tomatoes, pink grapefruit, watermelon, guava, cranberries, and papaya[3]

ORANGE & YELLOW: Carotenoids are antioxidants which help your body get enough Vitamin A.  Orange and yellow fruits and veggies are jam-packed with carotenoids to help reduce the risk of lung, esophagus, and stomach cancers.  It’s been estimated that 30-40 percent of cancers can be prevented by lifestyle and diet changes[4], so these foods are a great first step.

Orange and yellow foods also work to promote eye health and play an important role in maintaining healthy skin.  They boost your immune system and help build strong bones. I feel lucky to have a mango tree in my back yard so I can enjoy these health benefits regularly.

Try to eat: carrots, cantaloupe, mangos, winter squash, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, apricots, pineapple

GREEN: Protect yourself from coronary heart disease by eating green leafy vegetables rich in vitamin C.[5] Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cabbage contain phytochemicals which help protect against cancer. These foods are also packed with folic acid (good for pregnant women), vitamin K, carotenoids and omega-3 fatty acids.

Try to eat: broccoli, cabbage, bok choy, brussel sprouts

PURPLE & BLUE: Antioxidants are an important factor when protecting against cancer, stroke, and heart attack.  Purple and blue foods are rich in an antioxidant called anthocyanin.  These foods are also great form your memory and help promote healthy aging.

My favorite blue fruit is the blueberry. I try to have one cup of organic blueberries every day with some organic coconut yogurt.  They’re good for your heart, your brain, and your skin.  They’re just so good!

Try to eat: blueberries, eggplant, blackberries, prunes, plums, pomegranates, beets, purple cabbage

WHITE: If you want to lower your blood pressure and enjoy an immune system boost, then try some of these white fruits and vegetables.  They also minimize the risk of colon, prostate, and breast cancers. [6]

Try to eat: onions, mushrooms, cauliflower, bananas, pears, turnips.

Sources:

[1] https://www.deannaminich.com/the-rainbow-diet/

[2] Peter M Bramley, Is lycopene beneficial to human health?, Phytochemistry, Volume 54, Issue 3,2000,Pages 233-236,ISSN 0031-9422,https://doi.org/10.1016/S0031-9422(00)00103-5.

Available online: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031942200001035

[3] Joan Daniels, R.D. and Nancy Burke, R.D., “Eating Rainbows,” Rogel Cancer Center, University of Michigan Medicine, 2010. Available online: https://www.rogelcancercenter.org/living-with-cancer/mind-body-side-effects/nutrition/eating-rainbows

[4] Donaldson, M.S. Nutrition and cancer: A review of the evidence for an anti-cancer diet. Nutr J 3, 19 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-2891-3-19

[5] The Effect of Fruit and Vegetable Intake on Risk for Coronary Heart Disease Kaumudi J. Joshipura, Frank B. Hu, JoAnn E. Manson, Meir J. Stampfer, Eric B. Rimm, Frank E. Speizer, Graham Colditz, Alberto Ascherio, Bernard Rosner, Donna Spiegelman, and Walter C. Willett, Annals of Internal Medicine 2001 134:12, 1106-1114

[6] Winneshiek Medical Center, “The Importance of a Colorful Diet,” 2020. Available online: http://www.winmedical.org/our-services/clinics/family-medicine/healthy-eating/the-importance-of-a-colorful-diet/