Fact Sheet - Health Benefits of Colourful Fruit

Apart from their visual appeal, colourful fruit also provide a wealth of health benefits. 

Health benefits of colourful fruit:

• They are power packed with natural anti-cancer nutrients and phytochemicals.
• Phytochemicals usually occur as colour pigments in fruit and vegetables. Phytochemicals are bioactive compounds which promote good health by functioning as antioxidants to help slow the aging process and reduce the risk for many diseases
• Colourful fruit and vegetables have thus been labelled “powerhouse” fruit and vegetables. Phytochemicals cannot be produced by the body and most come from fruit and vegetables we eat. 

Examples:
Tomatoes contain the phytochemcial lycopene which may help neutralise toxic agents that damage DNA (genetic material in our body). In a 1995 study of 48,000 men, Harvard researchers found that those who ate 10 servings of tomato-rich foods in a week over a period of 6 years significantly cut their risk of prostate cancer by nearly half.    

Strawberries or other berries contain phytochemicals that have been found to protect against age-related deterioration in mental functions. Preliminary findings from animal studies have demonstrated that supplementation of diet with berry extracts reduces the vulnerability of brain to oxidative stress that occurs in aging, and these reductions are expressed as improvements in both motor and cognitive functions. For example, both young and middle-aged mice taking a diet supplemented with blueberry extracts performed significantly better on maze navigation than their controls which receive a diet not containing the fruit extract. 

Bananas are an excellent source of potassium. A diet rich in potassium works in tandem with reduced salt intake to maintain blood pressure within healthy range.

Papayas are high in beta-carotene which is part of a diet that can help to maintain good vision.  
 
High- calcium soya milk is used as a main ingredient in two of the mocktails newly introduced at Food Republic. Soya milk contains isoflavones which function as phytoestrogens to promote women’s health. High-calcium soya milk is also enriched with calcium, which help to promote strong bones.