Strawberries!

I spent last Sunday strolling the Ballard Farmer’s market. Being at the market is just about my favorite thing to do. I walk through the vendors with a permanent smile across my face. How could I not? I’m in nutritionist heaven. What I think I like most about the market is the people and vendors that frequent it. It’s a nice community of people, people who believe in supporting local economies and want to make a statement with their spending power. We give back to the people who grow our food by buying from them directly and standing up for their livelihood. I won’t go on anymore about my fondness for the market though I can and probably will in another post.

The market that day was particularly alive. It was the scent of sweet strawberries in the air that created this wonderful atmosphere. The beautifully ripe Washington berries were delicious. I bought 4 pints that I ate in about 2 days (What? You must!). The flavors were perfect on their own that there was no need to get fancy. I just sliced them up and indulged.

Berries are amazing foods. Their vibrant colors indicate that there is loads of good phytonutrients in there. Phytonutrients are a broad class of non-essential nutrients that fall under the even broader class of antioxidants. Antioxidants work to neutralize free radicals in the body, which cause damage to cells. Science doesn’t even know all the roles that these nutrients play. Even though these compounds are not “essential” for normal body functioning, I would argue that they are absolutely essential for optimal health. Why do you think health professionals are always telling you to eat your fruits and vegetables? We are not sure of all the mechanisms just yet, but we know that people who eat more fruits and vegetable are better off health wise. Strawberries are particularly health promoting due to a class of compounds called phenols. This gives the strawberries their striking red color. You may have heard of phenols in reference to red wine, but there are many different phenols found in fruits and vegetables, so it is not necessary to drink wine to get the benefits that are touted (sorry!). Some of the benefits associated with the particular phenols found in strawberries (anthocyanins and ellagitannins) are decreased inflammation, cancer prevention, protection against macular degeneration and rheumatoid arthritis. Is there any more of a reason to delight in your favorite fruits this summer??