Aim for a variety of vegetables, fruits

Q: I am trying to take off a few pounds gradually, but in truth, it’s so slow that it’s adding up to nothing! I’ve been eating a wide variety of foods like the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines says to, so what’s wrong? Abigail L., Springfield, Illinois

A: Losing weight gradually is the right way to shed it and keep it off. That said, we wonder about what you mean by “variety.” A milkshake and a carrot stick is not what’s meant by “variety” — but it’s what many folks seem to think they can get away with.

In fact, it’s gotten to be enough of a problem that the American Heart Association recently issued a position paper saying, “Greater dietary diversity is associated with suboptimal eating patterns, that is, higher intakes of processed foods, refined grains and sugarsweetened beverages.”

So what is the variety that you should be aiming for? A variety of colors and types of veggies and fruits is a good place to start. You want to enjoy some legumes, some leafy greens, some cruciferous veggies like broccoli and cauliflower, some citrus and some fleshy fruits and berries daily. You can add lean proteins like skinless chicken and fish.

But if that variety doesn’t spice up your interest in healthy eating, just remember that while variety may be the spice of life, spices are the life of variety. Here are three of our favorites.

Turmeric: A main component of curry powder, turmeric delivers powerful flavor, and preliminary studies show it can reduce the number of heart attacks bypass patients have postsurgery and control knee pain from osteoarthritis as well as ibuprofen can. People from India, who use it frequently, have much lower rates of dementia. Animal studies confirm its brain benefits.

Cinnamon: Use this to flavor your coffee and make black beans sing with flavor. It’s also has anti-fungal properties, and helps to control glucose levels.

Pepper: Black pepper can combat cancer-causing properties of grilled foods —just coat lean chicken or veggies with ground pepper before cooking over a flame.