Michael Pollan's Food Rules

*Image and inspiration from Rules to Eat By

Michael Pollan, NY Times author of In Defense of Food, posted a request asking for people's rules about eating well. The 20 rules he highlighted will start a series of posts about a healthy eating lifestyle. Some have to do with the nutritional value of food, while others with the social or holistic values.

I like this, because although it is a list of rules it is not a "diet." When looking at these rules, I am also going to take the Harvard food pyramid (not the U.S. government's) into consideration.

So what does a healthy eating lifestyle look like?

Rule #1: From Marta Larusso:

"My parents are both form Italy, and one of our family rules was that you could not leave the table until you had finished your fruit: "Non si puo lasciare la tavola fino che hai finito la frutta." It was a great way to incorporate fruit into our diets and also helped satiate our sweet tooths, keeping us away from less healthful sweets."

The pyramid recommends 2-3 servings a day. Some fruits that fall under the "super foods" category for great health benefits include:

• Cranberries: Contain compounds that block bacteria that cause urinary tract infection, ulcers, and even gum disease
  
• Blackberries: Full of antioxidants (including Vitamin C and E)
• Strawberries: Have more Vitamin C than any berry
• Raspberries: High in antioxidants
• Blueberries: Highest level of antioxidants and high in fiber
• Oranges: Full of Vitamin C (helpful for healing wounds and brain function, as well as staving off colds)
• Cantaloupe: High in beta-carotene (converted to Vitamin A in the body)