Are White Foods Unhealthy?

SeaBreeze

SeaBreeze

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Some white foods can be very nutritious and healthy for you, more here.

White foods don't contain any nutrients. White foods are bland. White foods are bad for you.

Sound familiar? White colored foods often get a bad rap. You've probably heard the common advice to "eat the rainbow" for good health. And yes, a rainbow of nutrients will make it easier to get a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals. Focusing on the rainbow can be an especially useful tool when teaching children the importance of eating fruits and vegetables. But the cool thing is that colorless foods have nutrients, too.

White foods are commonly seen as an offender in the obesity epidemic in America. And while it's true that white refined sugar holds little to no benefit in our diets, not all white foods are created equal. It's important to differentiate between the benefits of white fruits and vegetables compared to white refined grains such as white rice, breads and pastas.

In addition to a vast array of vitamins and minerals, white colored plants have something called phytonutrients. Phytonutrients are a compound found in plants that have been proven to protect against many diseases. Fancy words like indoles, allicin and glucosinolates are all kinds of phytonutrients found in your white colored foods.

Potential health benefits of phytonutrients include:


  • Ward off bacterial or viral infection
  • Decrease cancer risk or slow advancement of cancer
  • Improve blood cholesterol levels

Try adding some of these white foods to your favorite family meals:

Potatoes.Did you know that potatoes have more potassium than a banana? And they're also full of vitamin C, vitamin B6 and fiber. This all equals heart health and blood pressure control. Potatoes are so much more than just "sugar," as some might think.

Cauliflower. This "white broccoli" has so many nutritional benefits of its own. Cauliflower is known for its anti-inflammatory properties, which can help the immune system and decease cancer risk. This cruciferous vegetable is also high in choline, which is a nutrient that many people don't get enough of.

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Great reminder! I'm going to have to try those new pizzas with the crust made of riced cauliflower. I live the florets of raw cauli & white mushrooms are very nutritious too. I always knew that the potatoes themselves are very nutritious. It's all the butter, cheese, sour cream etc that people put on them that isn't real healthy.
Anyone think of some more healthy white foods?
 
This seems like a silly premise to me, probably started by someone at war with white sugar and bleached flour. I don't know about y'all, but the flesh of most of the apples I eat is white!
 
A good reminder, SB. I agree with "it's all good" and "moderation", or somewhat less if diabetic.

Would parsnips be considered a white food?. Also thinking about turnips and many types of fish.
 
Probably, the operative word here would be “processed”; most processed white foods have had the nutrients processed out of them.
However, most processed foods of ANY color have also had the nutrients processed out; so I think that the key thing here is to eat wholesome, natural foods.
My little slogan goes something like this , “If God made it, then I can eat it, and if man processed it, then leave it alone.”
Of course, this is not 100%; but overall, it works for me.
 
RadishRose said:
Would parsnips be considered a white food?. Also thinking about turnips and many types of fish.
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Not sure about the fish, I think some darker fish like salmon offer more nutrients. Parsnips and turnips are mentioned in the link on this old thread about root vegetables, they would be considered white in my book.

I agree with everything in moderation, we all agree the other colorful food groups are very healthy for you, but the white foods did seem to get a bad rap, I love potatoes too, just don't have them as often as when I was younger and cut out the butter on them, use olive oil light or EVOO to saute them in sliced and seasoned.

Shaped like a carrot, but white, the parsnip has an earthier flavor. “My kids think they taste like dirt,” Pedersen laughs. But that doesn’t stop her from sneaking parsnips into foods like soups and stews. “It’s in the same family as the carrot, but it doesn’t have that big beta-carotene hit,” she says.

However, parsnips do contain folate, magnesium, vitamin C, potassium and phosphate, as well as fiber. It also has a phytonutrient called falcarinol that has shown cancer-fighting properties.
Delbridge suggests substituting mashed parsnip for mashed potato, or at least going half and half. Pedersen adds parsnip to her roasted root vegetable mix, purees it and adds it to lasagna or soups, or shreds it and slips it into baked goods or oatmeal for added fiber.

Often confused for one another, turnips tend to have a purple top and a slightly more bitter flavor. Both are members of the brassica family (that includes cabbage, kale and broccoli, among others) and have been shown to reduce the risk of breast and prostate cancer. But maybe it’s the muted, earthy flavor and white tone that make these root vegetables a little less showy on the plate, and therefore less seen on menus today.

“Rutabaga and turnip are really nice in a pan of roasted vegetables and give a sharpness that goes well with the sweetness of a sweet potato or carrot,” Pedersen says. She also adds both to shredded raw salads or boils them until soft and adds them to mashed potatoes or cauliflower.

Delbridge uses a turnip puree to thicken soups that call for heavy cream. “Because of the starch content, they lend a creaminess to soup,” he says. “If you’re making a cream-based soup, do half dairy and half puree to cut the calories.” Both can also be chopped up and added easily to soups and stews.
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https://www.seniorforums.com/showthread.php/37432-Root-Veggies-Have-Superfood-Qualities!?highlight=turnips


 
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