by Anne StClair

Created on: April 15, 2010

On the Japanese island of Okinawa, people are more likely to live to over 100 than they are anywhere else on Earth. Not only that, but they remain fit, healthy, and productive well into their advanced years. There are many reasons for longevity, but one of the greatest reasons is what people eat, and in Okinawa the people eat what is known as a rainbow diet.

The term “diet” is a bit misleading, because diet implies that you eat a certain way until you lose (or gain) weight, and then you go back to eating the old way. The rainbow diet is more a way of eating for life. What is it? As the name suggests, the rainbow diet features a rainbow of colours. Green foods such as spinach, broccoli, green pears, apples and grapes; red foods such as tomatoes, beetroot (beets), radishes, red peppers, chillies; orange and yellow foods such as citrus fruits, bananas; purples and blues, such as eggplants and blueberries.

The rainbow diet aims to maximize the number and range of colours on the plate, and this also maximizes the nutritional content of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients, and these are much better obtained from foods than from a pill bottle. Many of the pigments in plants, such as beta-carotene (which gives carrots their colour) are anti-oxidants that destroy the free radicals that damage cells and which are implicated in a range of diseases, including cancers. Other powerful antioxidants found in coloured fruits and vegetables include selenium and lycopenes (found in abundance in cooked tomatoes). The green pigment chlorophyll helps the body detoxify, and is known to protect from cancers. Green vegetables also contain lots of folate, iron, and vitamin A.

Adopting a rainbow diet is easy, and will help you stay younger and healthier for longer, because many of the health problems and obesity in modern westerners are caused by faulty nutrition and poor diets overloaded with white flours, sugars, and fats, and deficient in fibre and nutrients. Another feature of the rainbow diet of the Okinawans is it is low in calories – and that is because it includes an abundance of vegetables and fruits, leaving little room for the high calorie condensed starches and proteins. In Okinawa, much of the protein people eat is derived from tofu and other soy products, and fish, but red meat is fine in moderation, and contains masses of iron and the B vitamins, especially B12.

To eat the rainbow way, select foods with as wide a variety of colours as possible. Try new foods, and new combinations. Buy smaller quantities of a wider range of food, and look especially for foods in season. Ensure you have at least one green, red and yellow food each day (preferably each meal), but include lots of other colours as well. And don't forget the colourful herbs and spices, green, red and orange teas, red wine, and of course - black chocolate!

The rainbow diet helps the people of Okinawa live long and healthy lives, and it can do the same for you. It’s also a lot more interesting than eating the same old bland foods week after week. Go out and try something new and colourful today!

References:

Eating and Health: http://eatingandhealth.net

BBC article on places where people live longest: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7250675. stm

Rainbow Diet: http://www.scarletpixel.com/zmar09.html

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