Healthy Weight. Healthy Skin

Eating Fruits and Veggies Helps with Weight Loss, Glowing Skin

Insider's Viewpoint: Karen Fauber, Dietitian, US Army Reserves

Many of us want to lose or maintain weight, be healthy and have glowing skin. Eating more fruits and vegetables can help you do all that and more. Whether you choose fresh, frozen, canned or dried fruits and vegetables, you can find them all at your [grocery store]. Just remember, dried fruits have more calories in small amounts, so you’ll want to eat smaller portions of them.

How to have that healthy glow on your face
Oranges, berries, peppers, tomatoes, melons and broccoli are all high in vitamin C, which is so important in helping you get that vibrant, healthy glow while building healthy tissue and skin. Carrots, broccoli, spinach and kale are high in vitamin A, another beauty nutrient that your skin and eyes just love. Try eating some of these every day for healthy skin.
 
Want to lose weight and keep it off?
To lose weight, you have to eat fewer calories than what your body uses to maintain your current weight. A daily diet that includes more fruits and vegetables, which are high in nutrients and low in calories, can help you lose weight and keep it off.
Energy density is the relationship of calories to the weight of food. Some fruits and vegetables that are very low in energy density are tomatoes, cantaloupe, strawberries and broccoli. Research has shown that eating foods that are low in energy density helps people feel full and, as a result, they consume fewer calories. The water and fiber in fruits and vegetables contribute to feeling full longer, which can also keep you from eating more calories, leading to weight loss.

To help lose weight and have that glowing face:
  • Add extra carrots, broccoli, celery or other vegetables to soups and sauces.
  • Add sliced tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce while decreasing the amount of high-fat cheese or meat on sandwiches.
  • Choose whole fruit, which fills you up and is lower in calories than juice.
  • Choose fruit that is canned in fruit juice.
  • Eat more servings of vegetables as they are typically lower in calories per serving than fruits.

Major Karen Fauber, MA, RD, LD
Dietitian, Defense Commissary Agency
United States Army Reserves

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