4 Easy Ways to Eat More Fruits & Veg

Raise your hand if you feel the activities are ramping up since getting back to school and work this fall?

It’s easy to use “busy” as an excuse to eat on the run or to make less healthy choices, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

Here are some tips to make sure you (and your loved ones) can be munching on fruits & veggies no matter your schedule.

1️⃣ Wash & Chop in Advance

Take a small block of time on Sunday (or each evening) to wash and chop veggies like peppers, carrots, and celery to store in the fridge. This makes it just as easy to grab those as it is to grab a snack from the pantry!

2️⃣ Set Fruit Front & Center

Place fruits that stay out on the counter, like apples, oranges, and bananas, in a bowl that stays front and center. That way when you or any of the kids pass through, they’ll be easy to grab.

3️⃣ Carry a Cooler Bag

Keep a small lunch box or cooler bag at the ready so you can throw in some chopped fruits and veggies to carry along on your errands, carpools, or park dates. This works when out and about by yourself or with kids.

4️⃣ Pack Lunch

Eating out for lunch often means fewer fruits and veggies. Packing your lunch is one of the surest ways to eat more produce through the middle part of your day. Plus, you’ll save time and money.

So much of habit formation has less to do with what’s going on in your brain and more to do with the environmental cues around you.

The reason these ideas ☝️work is because they leverage the power of your environment to make it just as easy to eat fruits and vegetables as it is to eat packaged or processed food.

Are you in?

Comment with your favorite fruit or veggie emoji! 🍓🥦🍉🥕

3 Habits that Boost Neuroplasticity

3 more ways to improve neuroplasticity 🧠

In case you’ve missed my recent posts about neuroplasticity, a quick refresher: 

Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to create new connections and strengthen existing neural pathways. 

Because of neuroplasticity, we’re able to:

✅ Release Anxieties

✅ Improve Mood

✅ Respond Better to Stress

✅ Break Unwanted Habits

✅ Create Helpful Habits

✅ Think More Clearly

✅ Stay Focused

✅ Remember More Easily

✅ Learn New Skills

Neuroplasticity explains why things like brain games, meditation, and yoga work. But here’s where it really gets fun:

Everyday healthy habits that we so often recommend in functional medicine ALSO improve the brain’s plasticity—meaning all of your efforts to retrain your brain will work better.  

Like this:

🏋️‍♀️ Exercise triggers the release of a chemical called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which improves neuroplasticity. 

🥦 Fruits & vegetables are rich in antioxidants called polyphenols that protect nerves to support neuroplasticity. 

💤 Restorative sleep is also a necessary ingredient for neuroplasticity. 

The conventional medical paradigm likes to isolate the parts of the body, the treatments, and the outcomes. 

But in functional medicine, we know all the parts work together. 

And everything works better when our brains are on board 🙌

Don’t Miss This Superfood!

Can we talk for a quick sec about chard?

Don’t pass this beauty by in the produce section!

Coming from the same plant family as spinach and beets, chard is a green leafy vegetable and one of nature’s superfoods. 

Some call it Swiss chard (although it didn’t originate in Switzerland) or rainbow chard (because its stalks can be green, yellow, or bright pink). 

Here are some of its incredible health benefits:

🥬 Excellent source of vitamin K—for blood clotting and healthy bones

🥬 Good source of magnesium—for muscle relaxation and healthy blood pressure

🥬 Good source of vitamin C—to support body collagen and immune function

🥬 High in antioxidants—like beta carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin 

Chard has a mild flavor and is delicious sauteed or boiled. Just remember that the stalks are much thicker than the leaves and require a bit more cooking time to soften up. 

Drop me a comment—do you have a favorite way to prepare chard?

#foodasmedicine #leafygreens #rainbowchard #nutritiontips