There are numerous accounts on Instagram that provide helpful health information. One of my favorites is naturalremedies.ig — look ’em up. A recent post shared suggestions for eating certain things together, like a buddy system. Think of it as “food pairs,” which contain nutrients that are complementary to one another in some way. Eating these foods as separate items is good for your health. However, if you pair certain foods up and eat them together, you gain even more healthful benefits.
You’d be surprised at how many health problems you can resolve through dietary changes. Your food pairs will not include highly processed foods or “food-like” foods that aren’t really food at all! One of the items is processed but you can use a natural form of it, meaning without processed sugar or preservatives. Okay, let’s get to it! The next time you go grocery shopping, add these items to your list, then start eating them in pairs.
Tomatoes and avocados should be on your list of healthy food pairs
When my kids were little, we used to call the cherry tomato plants in my garden, “God’s candy.” My children knew that they were welcome to pick and eat the juicy, red treats at any time. It was a snack food that they didn’t have to seek permission to enjoy. It was there for the taking! Tomatoes are a super healthy food choice. They contain a chemical compound called, “lycopene,” that is an effective cancer-fighting agent. Interestingly, tomatoes are one food that are even healthier cooked than when eaten raw. (It’s usually the reverse for most foods.) The reason for this is that cooking a tomato enables heat to break down the cell walls of the fruit. This, in turn, makes it easier for your body to absorb the nutrients.
Cooking tomatoes might decrease vitamin C levels a bit. However, it greatly increases the level of lycopenes, sometimes more than 150%. As for food pairs, the best buddy you can team up with a tomato, according to Natural Remedies on Instagram, is an avocado. Avocados are loaded with monounsaturated fat (which is good for you, so disregard anything you read that says fat is bad for you). The monounsaturated fats in an avocado make the lycopene in a tomato more powerful.
Simple, old-fashioned food pairs include apples and peanut butter
Because peanut butter exists in an altered form from its original harvest (peanuts), it is a processed food. But, you can buy organic or make your own, leaving out all of the unhealthy ingredients. When its paired with apples, peanut butter provides much needed protein, which is complementary to the simple carbohydrates in the apple slices, which are also loaded with fiber. When you eat these foods together, you’ll feel full and satisfied.
If you eat kale, add a lemon to the meal
Kale is one of the healthiest foods you can eat. It’s packed full of iron, which your body needs to be healthy. Hemoglobin is a type of protein in your red blood cells. Iron is a primary component of hemoglobin. If you don’t have enough iron in your body, your red blood cells will not be able to carry out one of their main jobs, which is to transport oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body. One of the first symptoms you’ll exhibit if you lack iron is fatigue.
So, where do the lemons come in for these food pairs? Lemons are rich in vitamin C. Vitamin C helps your body absorb iron. Get it now? When you pair these two foods together, the lemons help your body to process the nutrients in the kale.
Beets and chickpeas go together for good health
In a similar fashion to lemons and kale, beets and chickpeas are another great food pair to incorporate into your diet. As noted on naturalremedies.ig, beets are rich in magnesium, which plays a key role in muscle and nerve support, as well as energy production. The vitamin B6 in chickpeas can help your body absorb magnesium.
Apples get a second turn
Apples make great food pairs, not just with peanut butter but also with dark chocolate. They’re are good for your heart because they contain anti-inflammatory properties. Dark chocolate is loaded with antioxidants. Antioxidants help protect against heart disease. Eating dark chocolate also improves blood circulation and prevents blood clots. When you pair up all the goodness in dark chocolate with the inflammation-reducing properties in an apple, you’ve got yourself a snack made in heaven for good health.
These food pairs are inexpensive. In fact, you can grow your own kale, tomatoes and beets. Many people grow peanuts and avocados, too! Whether you grow your own or buy them at the store, you’ll be well on your way to better health if you start eating these foods in pairs!