The Real Power of Fruit

In the food pyramid, fruit sits right at the bottom, in the "eat generously every day" category. But why is fruit so important, and what exactly does it do for us?
Last autumn, the Federal Statistical Office released some sobering figures. Around half the Swiss population is overweight, which suggests our eating habits have got out of hand. High-calorie foods and drinks with a high fat content are pushing essential but low-calorie food like fruit and vegetables into the background – at the expense of our own health.

Low in calories
While a 2.5 dl iced tea has around 75 calories, roughly 150 grams of broccoli has just 37. This small example shows clearly that fruit and vegetables are very low-calorie sources of energy – but that doesn't mean their role is any less important – quite the opposite, in fact.
Fruit and vegetables contain plenty of valuable nutrients, such as water, carbohydrates, dietary fibre, minerals and, of course, vitamins. These nutrients are important for your metabolism, support healthy digestion and strengthen your body's immune system.

Immune system
The immune system plays a huge role in keeping living organisms physically intact, since practically every organism is constantly exposed to influences from its living environment; some of these pose a real threat: if harmful micro-organisms get into the body, this can lead to malfunctions and illness. Typical pathogens are bacteria, viruses and fungi, as well as single-celled (e.g. protozoa such as plasmodia) or multi-celled parasites (e.g. tapeworms).

The ideal snack
Unlike the many sweet temptations lurking around every corner, you should eat fruit several times a day. The more colourful the mix, the better. Especially in the summer and autumn months, seasonal fruit like strawberries or apples are the ideal snack for a break. If you're cooking vegetables to go with a nice piece of meat, be gentle with them: steam them enough, but not until they're too soft – timing and temperature are what make or break the result. Cooked vegetables should be served straight away, since leaving them standing for too long causes many valuable nutrients to be lost.