Life
Avocados and Tomatos Are Better Together, and 4 More Healthy Food Combinations to Maximize Nutrition
You may be doing your best to load up on all the fresh vegetables, whole grains, and fruits you can get your hands on, but if you are eating these health foods by themselves, that might not be enough to reap their benefits. If you’re not pairing the right foods together, you probably aren’t getting all of their vitamins and nutrients.
Sound surprising? “Food synergy,” a concept coined by researcher David R. Jacobs, PhD, is a lesser known area of nutrition. The premise behind food synergy is that eating specific foods together maximizes their health effects. Combining the right foods could actually increase your body’s absorption of fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, all necessary cornerstones for good health.
“Many nutrients compete for the same receptors in the gastrointestinal tract for absorption,” says Lauren Cornell, RD. “Studies have shown that certain food combinations have been proven to increase nutrient absorption when consumed together."
While healthy foods are still good for you on their own, pairing them with foods that carry other supplemental nutrients helps optimize their nutritional benefits, which include fighting off sicknesses such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.
Lucky for you, foods that work well in your body also tend to taste delicious together. Here are five powerful food combinations and healthy ways to prepare them.
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Tomatoes and Avocado
Tomatoes are rich in lycopene, an antioxidant known as carotenoid, which gives tomatoes its color. Adding a healthy fat such as avocado makes the carotenoid more absorbable, says Cornell. Here’s an excuse to add a side of guacamole next time you’re munching on chips and salsa: Research at Ohio State University found when avocado was combined with salsa, people absorbed four times the amount of lycopene than when they ate the salsa alone.
Recipe: Simple Guacamole
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Leafy Greens and Olive Oil
The unsaturated fatty acids in olive oil combined with the nitrites in green leaves help lower blood pressure, which in turn helps prevent against stroke, heart failure, and heart attacks. The healthy fat in olive oil also helps you absorb the vitamins found in leafy greens, so try to avoid eating fat-free dressings when eating salad.
Recipe: Kale Salad with Lemon and Parmesan
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Garlic and Fish
Eating garlic with fish is a great way to lower your cholesterol. Both foods have their own unique cholesterol-reducing benefits, but eating them together helps maximize their effects. “Garlic and fish, together, increase cardiovascular health by contributing both omega-3 fatty acids, which increase HDL (“healthy” cholesterol) and lower overall cholesterol as well as reduce inflammation,” says Cornell.
Recipe: Lemon Garlic Oven-Roasted Salmon
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Green Tea and Lemon
Green tea is high in flavonoid antioxidants called catechins, which help lower blood pressure and cholesterol, fight Alzheimer's, and reduce risk of heart disease, among other benefits.The vitamin C in lemon brings out green tea’s antioxidants, allowing your body to absorb six times as many catechins. Green tea can also prevent your body from absorbing iron, but adding lemon to your drink counteracts this negative effect.
Recipe: Mint and Lemon Iced Green Tea
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Beans and Rice
Eaten together, beans and rice contain all of the essential amino acids to be considered a complete protein. “Animal protein sources are complete by nature,” says Cornell. “But for vegetarians seeking complete protein sources, it is important to pair plant-based protein foods such as beans and rice, called “complementary proteins,” in order to receive all of the essential amino acids at one time.”
This ensures the body has all the building blocks necessary to construct lean body mass, hormones, and soft tissue.
Recipe: Easy Tomato Beans and Rice
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