Revive Your Healthy Eating Resolutions (NAPSA)}—Every year, many people makea resolution to exercise moreor follow a more balanced eating plan. Unfortunately, with each passing month, most lose the motivation to follow through andstart to revert back to unhealthy habits. With the arrival of warmer weather, now is the perfect time to reassess and revive your healthy eating resolutions—it’s simpler than you think. Small changes to your diet can lead to big improve- people should increase consump- One easy goal is to add more fruits and vegetables to your diet. The recently released Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 continues to reinforce the importance of consuming produce, recommending that you fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables. California Avocados: An Easy Solution to Add Flavor and Boost Nutrient Intake Regularly enjoying delicious California avocados is one simple way to help meet the recommended daily fruit servings and boost nutrient intake. Avocadosalso provide a number of other nutritional benefits that can help you achieve your healthy eating resolutions, including: eAvocados are nutrient dense. One-fifth of a medium Cali- fat (3.5 grams per 1-ounce serving), ments in your overall health. fornia avocado (1 ounce), a nutrient-dense fruit, has 50 calories and contributes nearly 20 vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients to the diet, in addition to being naturally sugar-free and sodium-free. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 emphasizes choosing nutrient-dense foods from each food group as the best approach to meeting nutrient needs within calorie recommendations. *Avocados provide two nutrients that are likely lacking from your diet. One-fifth of a medium California avocado (1 ounce) provides 8 percent of the Daily Valuefor fiber and 4 percent of the Daily Value for potassium. Dietary fiber and potassium are generally underconsumed by Americans and are identified by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 as nutrients of which tion. Both are important to a diet—dietary potassium can help lower blood pressure by blunting the adverse effects of sodium, and dietary fiber that occurs naturally in foods may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity and type 2 diabetes, as well as help provide a feeling of fullness. *Avocados can help you improve your “good fat” intake. Seventy-five percent of the fat in a California avocado is unsaturated making it a great substitute for foods high in saturated fat. Replacing some saturated fatty acids with unsaturated fatty acids has been shown to lower both total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterollevels. Forthe full report of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 and information on how California avocados can help meet those guidelines, visit CaliforniaAvocado.com/ Healthy-Living. California avocados can be easily incorporated into a number of recipes that promote the consumption of other foods recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010, including fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Here’s a delicious recipe totry: Mediterranean Pasta Salad with California Avocado Serves: 4 Prep Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 25 minutes Ingredients: 3 tablepoons extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice % teaspoonsalt 2 tablespoonsloosely packedfresh dill % Ib. orecchiette or small pasta, cooked, drained and cooled 1 ripe, fresh California avocado’, peeled, seeded and cut into %-inch cubes 1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut kg ff ~~ ' y Regularly enjoying delicious California avocadosis an easy way to help meet the recommendeddaily fruit servings. in quarters % cup pitted kalamata olives, cut in half 4 medium hot house cucumber, cut lengthwise in quarters and sliced 1 cup artichoke hearts, cut in half Opt for a whole grain pasta to boost fiber intake. Instructions: 1. Place olive oil, lemon juice and salt in a food processor or blender; blend until creamy. Add dill and pulse just until incorporated. Pour over pasta and toss to coat. 2. Add remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Serve immediately or cover and chill until ready to serve. Nutrition information per serving: Calories 300; Total Fat 19 g (Sat 2.5 g, Trans 0 g, Poly 2 g, Mono 13 g); Cholesterol 0 mg; Sodium 270 mg; Potassium 540 mg; Total Carbohydrates 30 g; Dietary Fiber 8 g; Protein 7 g. * Large avocados are recommendedfor this recipe. A large avocado averages about 8 ounces. If using smaller or larger size avocados adjust the quantity accordingly. For more avocado nutrition information and delicious California avocadorecipes, visit California Avocado.com.
