Consuming more fresh produce with vivid colors can improve the health of women
Women often have greater rates of sickness while living longer on average than men. A diet rich in pigmented carotenoids, such as those found in yams, kale, spinach, watermelon, bell peppers, tomatoes, oranges, and carrots, is now suggested by recent research from the University of Georgia as a way to reduce these greater incidences of sickness. These colorful fruit items play a crucial role in minimizing cognitive and visual decline.
Billy R. Hammond, a professor in UGA’s Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of psychology behavioral and brain sciences program and co-author of the study, said: “The idea is that men get a lot of the diseases that tend to kill you, but women get those diseases less often or later, so they persevere, but with illnesses that are debilitating.”
For instance, two-thirds of all macular degeneration and dementia cases in the world today are in women. These illnesses, from which women suffer for years, are the ones that can be prevented through lifestyle changes.
Even after correcting for differences in longevity, the study detailed a number of degenerative disorders that affect women far more frequently than do men, including autoimmune diseases and dementia.
“If you include all autoimmune illnesses, women make up about 80% of the population.” Women therefore require more preventive care due to their sensitivity, which is directly related to biology, “said Hammond.
What role does gender play in health?
The way women retain vitamins and minerals in their bodies is one of the factors contributing to this sensitivity. According to Hammond, women often have more body fat than men.
Many dietary vitamins and minerals are significantly sunk by body fat, which provides pregnant women with a helpful reservoir. But because there is less available for the retina and the brain, women are more likely to experience degenerative issues.
Pigmented carotenoids in the human diet serve as antioxidants. Lutein and zeaxanthin, two distinct carotenoids found in particular tissues of the eye and brain, have been demonstrated to directly ameliorate central nervous system degeneration.
According to Hammond, men and women consume roughly the same amounts of these carotenoids, but women have substantially higher needs.
Generally speaking, there are no guidelines for men or women for dietary elements that are not directly related to deficient diseases (such as vitamin C and scurvy), according to Hammond.
Part of the article’s thesis is that suggestions should be revised to make women more conscious of their vulnerabilities and encourage them to take proactive steps to address them before they become issues later in life.
Supplements containing carotenoids are also available, and the National Institutes of Health’s National Eye Institute program has concentrated resources on certain carotenoids. Additionally, Hammond said that ingesting lutein and zeaxanthin through food is a far superior method than using pills to increase intake.
“Dietary factors affect the brain, affecting everything from personality to how we view ourselves.” People may not fully comprehend the enormous impact eating has on their basic identity, mood, and even predisposition to rage, “said Hammond.
The microbiome and the bacteria in your gut are now included in this, as they all contribute to the development of our brain’s structural elements and the neurotransmitters that regulate how it functions.
