WEBVTT

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Fruit and vegetables - in
the brightest possible colors.

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Lots of influencers recommend
what's called a 'rainbow diet' --

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eating foods based on color.

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It's said to strengthen your immune
system and promote good health.

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"I would always
recommend eating lots of colorful

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vegetables and fruit."

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So do colors
really make a difference?

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Susanne Raff has been selling
fresh produce at a weekly market

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for 25 years.

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She grows some of
the produce herself.

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"Back during my training days -- so a
long time ago -- we learned about

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the rainbow diet...

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that to get all the necessary trace
elements, enzymes and antioxidants,

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you have to eat red, yellow, green,
blue, purple and orange vegetables."

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Hyped on the internet, the rainbow 
diet has become popular.

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Its proponents sometimes claim
particular colors are associated

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with specific health benefits.

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Blue, for example, is associated with 
improved memory function

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and a balanced mood.

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Orange - as in
oranges, carrots or turmeric - is said

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to promote fertility.

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Red - like raspberries,
strawberries or bell peppers are

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thought to be anti-inflammatory.

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Other colors like green or
yellow are also rumored to have

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certain health benefits.

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At the German Federal Research
Institute of Nutrition and Food,

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Daniela Graf studies
secondary metabolites in plants.

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Our foods contain thousands of
these compounds,

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and some remain poorly understood.

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But one thing is clear:

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"The health benefits of fruit and vegetables

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aren't linked to their color.

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Just eating a red fruit
doesn't mean it'll have

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this or that effect."

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That's because particular
colors aren't always caused by

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the same compounds:

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 "Take tomatoes and strawberries, for example.

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Most people would say
they're relatively similar colors.

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In tomatoes though, the
red comes from lycopene.

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That's a compound in
the group of carotenoids.

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In strawberries, the red
comes from anthocyanins."

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Lab work and
small-scale clinical studies show

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that the anthocyanins found in some
berries, red cabbage and black

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soybeans have anti-inflammatory
effects on the body.

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And that could help protect against
cardiovascular disease and cancer.

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That's because they're antioxidants
that help prevent damageto

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to the body's cells.

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But Daniela Graf says that we
still don't know that much about how

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the body absorbs anthocyanins.

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"Anthocyanins are pretty unstable,
and aren't absorbed in large

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quantities directly, but
rather as their broken-down catabolic

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or metabolic products.

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"However, there are promising
studies indicating that breakdown

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products from anthocyanins might
have an effect on the microbiome

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in the gut.

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So what about yellow?

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For example, the compound curcumin,
found in the turmeric root.

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Jan Frank has been studying
the substance for more than 20

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years.

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What possible effects
could this intense color have?

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"There are many secondary plant
metabolites including curcumin,

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which is yellow and
has certain effects.

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But other secondary metabolites
have different colors -- like green

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or red -- but similar effects.

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So color and effect
aren't directly related."

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There are many lab and animal
studies indicating that curcumin

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can be anti-inflammatory,
it could help prevent cancer

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and relieve pain.

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And some studies suggest
the yellow compound even helps

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guard against dementia.

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However, large-scale studies
in humans proving preventive and

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curative properties have
yet to be carried out.

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Very little of the curcumin
eaten is actually absorbed.

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Most is excreted
again relatively quickly.

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Experts think the process might
help train the body in how to get

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rid of more toxic substances.

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"The body thinks
everything is harmful at first.

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It's careful, so it converts stuff
into products it can excrete.

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And this also trains it to
eliminate substances that are

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really bad for you,
like toxins or carcinogens.

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If you consume them, the body
is then poised to excrete them

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in the urine."

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Tomatoes are
popular the world over.

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Their standard red color is mainly
due to the compound lycopene.

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Up to 5 milligrams can be found
in 100 grams of fresh tomatoes.

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Lycopene is a member of
the carotene family,

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associated especially with carrots.

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But carotenes are
also abundant in broccoli.

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Many studies have focused on
lycopene...looking at whether it

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might slow down the aging process,
prevent cancer and protect

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the heart, or have an
impact on diseases like

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diabetes and osteoporosis.

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"Just like curcumin, lycopene
is a substance that has a lot

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of interesting effects.

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But we don't yet have really
convincing studies proving that it

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has them in humans."

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But even if the colors in
fruit or vegetables say nothing

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definitive about particular health
issues, eating a rainbow diet still

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has a positive effect.

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"Going with colorful is a good rule
of thumb, because it ensures you

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eat a varied diet, and
avoid an unbalanced one!"

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"Susanne Raff has always eaten
plenty of fresh produce, and says

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she practically never
has to go to the doctor.

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"So I think eating

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lots of vegetables and
fruit does have an effect.

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It helps keep you healthy!"

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To maximize the
positive health effects, fruit and

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vegetables should be on your
table every day...combined in

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many different ways.

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That will help ensure
you get the most out of

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the nutrients they offer.