14 DAY TRIAL // The Rainbow Diet is not really a diet that will help you lose a certain number of kilos in a given period if time, it is rather a dietary principle that makes you both slim and healthy.
Scientific studies have shown that the pigments that confer the color to fruits and vegetables are laden with phytochemical compounds and antioxidants that strengthen the immune system and make the body stay fit, healthy and vitalized.
Antioxidant properties of the natural pigments fight against molecular oxidation by the free radicals. In our body an infinite number of chemical reactions take place every day. A part of the chemical changes in the cells that use oxygen give birth to free radicals, which are harmful for the cells and the organism. An excessive amount of free radicals interact with the DNA or parts of the other cells in the body and may damage them. But the antioxidants in fruits and vegetables counteract and neutralize these organic "enemies."
This is why the fruits and vegetables rich in antioxidants and phytochemical compounds (that have the same antioxidant function in the body) can protect the cells and prevent serious diseases such as cancer (which is mostly caused by the damaged DNA) or heart disorders (that are caused by the oxidized cholesterol that blocks the arterial walls.)
This is how the "rainbow" diet was born, by relating the colors of the vegetables and fruits to the beneficial pigments in their skin, flesh, roots, leaves etc. It is a multifunctional diet because, besides gracefulness and a slim body, it also gives us a feeling of well being, protects us from infections and severe diseases and is also a beauty remedy and treatment.
How are all this possible with only one diet? The different colored fruits and vegetables contain each a certain beneficial pigment depending on the color it has - red, blue-violet, green, yellow-orange etc. And if we mix the different colored plants everyday by eating five colors per day, we will actually benefit from the pigments in the fruits and vegetables.
However, the five colored fruits and vegetables are not all that one has to eat daily. Because this is not a drastic diet implied by women in order to get slimmer in no time, but with vitamin and mineral deficiencies. The "rainbow" diet is a long-term method of nutrition that helps you lose weight the natural way and stay healthy at the same time. It can become a lifestyle for anyone of us - a very healthy lifestyle.
Therefore, one does not have to become a vegetarian or to starve in order to keep to the diet. It can be supplied with meat, eggs or dairy. Also, you can yourself establish the daily number of calories and no one else has to do it for you.
The main natural pigments that give color to fruits and vegetables are:
The red pigment - contains the lycopene antioxidant, from the carotenoid family of pigments, which helps improving short and long term memory, protects and prevents from heart disorders and some types of cancer. It is extremely beneficial against the prostate and testicles and prevents skin, cervical, breast and prostate cancer. Besides the antioxidant properties, lycopene is also a detoxifier of the waste in the body and inhibits cholesterol formation.
Lycopene is present in the red fruits and vegetables, such as: red peppers, pimientos, tomatoes, apples, red onion, pink grapefruit, watermelon, guavas etc.
The blue-violet pigment - contains anthocyanines, which inhibit the cholesterol level in the blood and helps maintaining the flexibility of the blood vessels.
Anthocyanin is a water soluble pigment found in plants, more specifically in the cell vacuole. It is usually red, purple or blue and gives the color of many flowers and plants. This pigment is also a powerful antioxidant and protects the plants from UV rays negative effects by absorbing the dangerous high light rays.
Mixed with the beneficial effects of vitamin A or C, anthocyanins improve visual accuracy, improve blood circulation to the eyes and the nervous system and can prevent or fight against eyes disorders such as: pigmentosa, retinitis, glaucoma, myopia etc. This happens because anthocyanins are responsible for protecting the tissues of the retina of the eye against free radical damage.
Anthocyanins are present in blue-violet fruits and vegetables such as: grapes, plums, red cabbage and red beet, currants, figs, all kinds of berries etc.
The yellow-orange pigment - is given by the betacarotene, a natural compound that improves eyesight and helps heart to function accurately, strengthens the immune system, prevents against cancer and is an anti-aging and anti-wrinkling agent for the skin.
Betacarotene is a photopigment usually related and connected to the vitamin A in plants. It is stock-piled in the epidermis, most precisely in the membranes of skin cells, and in the subcutaneous fatty tissue. Here it performs a very important function, as betacarotene absorbs the UV rays radiation without allowing it to damage the tissues of the skin. This is how the natural protection of the skin works against the harmful effects of the sun.
Carotene can also be stored in the liver and, when the body needs it, converted into vitamin A.
Betacarotene is present in pumpkins, pears, carrots, saffron, oranges, tangerines, grapefruit, pineapples, bananas, mango fruits etc.
The green pigment - is given by lutein, that improves eyesight, the bone system and also the teeth, protects and prevents our organism from cancer. Moreover, the chlorophyll in found extensively in green plants has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects and also purifies the blood from toxins and other waste.
Lutein is found all throughout our body, but it is very concentrated in the macula of the eyes. That is why it significantly inhibits the risk of developing macular degeneration of the eyes and is much recommended for individuals that have eye problems and also for the ones that make extensive use of their visual ability. For example, people that are over-exposed to sun rays or computer screens on a regular basis.
Lutein is found in green vegetables and fruits, such as: cabbage, lettuce, broccoli, endives, asparagus, spinach, nettles, kiwi fruits, green apples, beans, peas, parsley, pepper grass, green tea etc.
The white pigment - contains one or more of the antioxidants mentioned before, depending in the fruit or vegetable. For example, garlic contains anthocyanines that can be seen when we cook garlic in an iron, tin or aluminum cooking pot.
White plants are very beneficial for our health, as they have an anti-infalmmatory and anti-allergenic effect and also prevent cancer.
The white curative plants are: garlic, onion, mushrooms, celery, parsley root, cauliflower etc.
