Eating a varied diet: Why does it matter?
Do you fall into the trap of rotating between the same four meals for dinner? We know all too well how easy it can be to rely on those fail-safe meals. While it’s handy to have a few staple meals to fall back on, adding variety to what you’re eating each day is important. Not only does eating a varied diet taste great, but it benefits your body (and your mind) in more ways than one.
The benefits of eating a variety of foods
So, where’s the link between a varied diet and better health? It all starts in the gut. The good bacteria that live in our gut love a balanced diet with lots of variety, and these bugs love to feed on prebiotic fibre (or prebiotics).
Prebiotics are the non-digestible fibres and resistant starches found in plant foods. Our gut bugs ferment prebiotic foods and can use them to grow more beneficial bacteria that help support our physical and mental health.
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There are many types of prebiotics, but the main prebiotic-rich foods include wholegrains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes. The more varied your diet is in terms of fruits, vegetables, legumes, and wholegrains, the more diverse your gut bacteria are!
Having variety in our diet can benefit our physical health, as well as our mental health. There’s lots of emerging research into this area, with studies finding that people with gastrointestinal disorders and depression often have less diverse gut bacteria.
It’s been shown that people who eat less than 10 different types of plant-based foods every week can have less diverse gut bacteria compared to those who have 30 different types of plant-based food every week.
Research has also found a strong relationship between a varied diet and a decreased risk of mental health disorders. In fact, depressive symptoms can even be reduced by consuming a varied diet rich in wholegrains and plants!
A great way to consume 30 different types of plant foods every week is to eat the rainbow. This helps ensure you’re consuming a range of phytonutrients, which are chemicals only found within fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants, flavonoids, and nitrates are all types of phytonutrients, which may help promote our cardiovascular health, mental health and regulate our hormones!
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Your diet and the immune system
The benefits of a varied diet don’t stop there. Did you know that about 70% of our immune system is associated with the gut?
This means that what we eat can have a strong influence on our immunity. Just as consuming a wide variety of foods may foster healthy immune function, a lack of these nutrients may suppress our immune system.
Lots of research has demonstrated how the immune system becomes impaired when people are undernourished, and their risk of infection and disease increases because of this.
What’s the takeaway? Mix it up! The best way to optimise your health is to choose a wide variety of foods from the core food groups, every day.
Challenge yourself to eat 30 different plant-based foods every week by eating the rainbow. Visit your local farmers market for seasonal produce, select fruits, vegetables and wholegrains of all different colours and enjoy some new meals full of variety.
Reviewed by the Healthylife Advisory Board March 2022
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This article is for informational purposes only and does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Any information published on this website or by this brand is not intended as a substitute for medical advice. If you have any concerns or questions about your health you should consult with a health professional.