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Eat the Rainbow: Why and How to Eat a Colorful Diet

By Ethan Boldt

March 24, 2025

Eat the rainbow. It’s a phrase you’ve surely heard, as it began in nutrition circles and now is repeated by health professionals worldwide.

What does “eat the rainbow” mean and is it good nutritional advice? It means eating a wide variety of colorful vegetables and fruits in your weekly diet, including the colors red, orange, yellow, green, white, blue and purple. Eating such colorful veggies and fruits ensures you’re consuming healthy amounts of nutrients and phytonutrients, so yes, it’s excellent nutritional advice.

As you’ll see below, the fruits and vegetables of each color contain certain pigments (phytonutrients) that are linked to specific health benefits. When frequently combined with other fruits and vegetables in “the rainbow,” a sizable impact on one’s health can occur because of the increase in nutrient intake.

Let’s learn about those benefits, the types of rainbow fruits and vegetables to consume, and tips for eating the rainbow most effectively.

Benefits

Studies show that regularly consuming colorful vegetables and fruits offers many benefits and virtually no downsides. Nonetheless, you should consult your healthcare professional prior to beginning any new dietary or lifestyle regimen.

When you routinely get multiple colors into your diet via a wide variety of colorful vegetables and fruits, you’re providing your body with a lot of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phytochemicals, carotenoids and other beneficial compounds.

Foods that represent the colors of the rainbow can offer these types of health benefits:

• Promote gut health — Many different colored foods can assist a healthy gut microbiome.

• Improved digestion — Many colorful vegetables and fruits are rich in fiber and prebiotics and help support the digestive system.

• Promote healthy levels of inflammation — The antioxidants in these rainbow foods can also support healthy levels of blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure and more, thus helping with heart health, the cardiovascular system and overall health.

• Support a healthy immune system — Many of these colorful vegetables and fruits contain vitamin C, beta carotene and other antioxidants that help support the immune system.

Best "eat the rainbow" foods

1. Red vegetables and fruits

These fruits and vegetables contain lycopene, which is a red carotenoid and a powerful antioxidant. It’s best recognized in tomatoes and supports heart, skin, brain and prostate health.

Examples: Tomatoes, beets, radish, red peppers, strawberries, watermelon and guava

2. Orange and yellow fruits and vegetables

These veggies and fruits contain carotenoids, which include pigments like lutein and zeaxanthin, and help support eye and skin health as well as promote healthy inflammation levels and heart health.

Examples: Carrots, apricots, pineapple, mangoes, winter squash, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, peaches and oranges

3. Green fruits and vegetables

Most green-colored vegetables, especially cruciferous vegetables, contain glucosinolates. When glucosinolates break down, helpful compounds indoles and isothiocyanates result and assist in promoting healthy inflammation levels.

Leafy greens are also loaded with essential vitamins like vitamins A, C and K, vital for healthy vision, immune system support and blood, respectively. They're also a good source of minerals like iron, calcium and magnesium, which support bones, muscles and energy.

One of the most famous green fruits is the avocado, a veritable superfood that’s also high in fiber, healthy monounsaturated fats and several antioxidants.

Examples: Broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, kale, artichokes, green herbs, avocados, kiwis, green apples and limes.

4. White and brown vegetables and fruits

Many of these veggies and fruits contain flavonoids and allicin, which can support healthy levels of both cholesterol and blood pressure. They can also promote bone health.

Onions and garlic are particularly high in the compound allicin that supports a healthy immune system and heart health.

Examples: Onions, garlic, cauliflower, potatoes, daikon, coconut, white peaches and mushrooms.

5. Blue and purple fruits and vegetables

Many of these blue fruits and vegetables contain anthocyanins, which belong to the flavonoid family and are known for their ability to support healthy inflammation levels and antioxidant power. In particular, they help support heart and brain health.

Examples: Blueberries, blackberries, figs, grapes, plums, eggplant and purple cabbage.

How to eat the rainbow

When it comes to eating the rainbow, the more colors you consume, the better in terms of nutrients as well as flavors. It’s a true win-win.

So how do you get more colorful fruits and vegetables into your weekly diet? Here are some tips:

• Whether you’re at the farmers market or the grocery store, first go to the fresh fruit and vegetable section and load up different colored fruits and vegetables that are in season.

• Every season offers a variety of colorful vegetables and fruits. March offers strawberries (red), winter squash (orange), asparagus (green), cauliflower (white) and purple cabbage (purple), for example.

• Aim to buy and consume the whole, unprocessed form of each colorful fruit and vegetable for optimal nutrition.

• Try to get at least two different colored fruits or vegetables into each meal, such as blueberries and strawberries with your morning yogurt, leafy greens and sliced tomato on your lunch sandwich, and sweet potatoes and cauliflower with your main meal at dinnertime.

• Choose dishes that welcome a variety of colors, such as yogurt bowls, smoothies, salads and stir-fries.

Here are some examples of some eating the rainbow meals and snacks:

• Protein smoothies with banana, blueberries and peaches

• A red, white and blue breakfast bowl

• A salad with arugula, spinach, avocado, purple cabbage, mushrooms, orange peppers, radish and cherry tomatoes. Add an olive oil dressing, grilled and chopped chicken or tofu, and some pumpkin seeds.

• A stir fry with a protein, onion, carrots, bok choy or kale, red peppers and mushrooms.