Eating the rainbow. A quick start guide to enhancing phytonutrients in your diet.
Michael Pollan, the author of several best-selling books, has written about the various aspects of eating plants. His famous thesis for nutrition management has become a mantra for me. He says,
Eat food.
Not too much.
Mostly plants.
This trend of eating a whole-food, plant-based diet has surpassed the cancer universe. Numerous professional organizations have been promoting the benefits of a whole-food, plant-based diet. Key to a meal plan that increases whole foods includes enhancing antioxidants and phytonutrients.
As a cancer patient, I was first introduced to this in a class taught by Dr. Susan Payrovi. At the time, she served as the integrative oncology clinician at Stanford University. Given the demand for her services, she taught classes. I enrolled to learn more about enhancing my treatment and optimizing survivorship.
While Dr. Payrovi shared a lot of content, the piece that stood out to me was 'eat the rainbow.' The first time I came across this quote, I realized I had not optimized my plate to eat the rainbow. Up to that lesson, my plate had been chiefly "beige." The primary direction is to eat at least 4 colors on your plate at every meal. Now that's not straightforward.
Since that lesson, I have changed (i) where I shop; (ii) how often I shop; (iii) how often I cook; (iv) what I shop for; (v) how I eat. It has made me feel healthier, stronger, and better. Eating the rainbow is challenging, but it is possible. You can do that regardless of cultural background, country, or cuisine. I learned about all of these vegetables that I had never met. I learned about kohlrabi, sunchokes, persimmons, huckleberries, squash blossoms, pomegranates, and sweet mini-peppers. These colorful plants now occupy the various shelves of my fridge daily. After a few days without the broccoli family, I feel a little worse.
Chef Raghav joined the Manta team this January. As a nutritional Chef, he optimizes his recipes to eat the rainbow. His clients have been with him for years. These individuals have varying medical conditions, and many healthy individuals optimize their well-being. Together we crafted a quick start guide to eating the rainbow. You can use this to guide your next grocery store.
Download our free guide to eating the rainbow here.
If you are curious about a plant you haven't heard of before and are having trouble finding a recipe, do let us know. We'd be happy to share some of ours.