Most Rainbow Diet involve limiting or eliminating entire food groups and are often associated with pain. The result is usually rapid weight loss, which almost always comes back several times faster than it went away.
Atlas does not recommend following restrictive diets without the recommendation of your doctor.
The rainbow diet is a nutrition trend inspired by a healthy lifestyle and associated with the concept of intuitive eating. Instead of recommending that you give up any foods, we, on the contrary, suggest adding more colorful fruits, berries and vegetables to your diet.
The Atlas biomedical holding has been researching the DNA of intestinal bacteria since 2013 and knows the secrets of nutrition for the health of the microbiota.
Nutritionists, scientists and biochemists in our team constantly monitor new scientific research, introducing the most current and only scientifically reliable information into the results of the Atlas Microbiota Test.
How does the rainbow diet affect the body?
Colorful vegetables and fruits contain antioxidants and anti-inflammatory molecules that support and protect health.
Depending on the color of the peel and pulp, beneficial substances in plant products of different colors have different effects on the body, as well as on the taste and smell of the products.
Antioxidants and polyphenols
Oxidative stress is a type of biological stress that affects the body at the cellular level. The reason is free radicals, or reactive oxygen species, that are formed in the body and in the environment.
Free radicals are involved in cellular reactions and the functioning of the immune system, but at high concentrations they are toxic.
Here are some common sources of free radicals in everyday life:
- Inflammation
- Physical exercise
- Cigarette smoke and air pollutants
- Pesticides, radiation, industrial solvents
Polyphenols in vibrant plant foods have antioxidant properties, enhancing the body’s natural ability to reduce oxidative stress . These phytonutrients help the body neutralize free radicals and prevent them from damaging cells.
Fiber, dietary fiber
Plant foods contain a lot of dietary fiber, including fiber. The human body has virtually no enzymes to break down complex carbohydrates.
Fiber normalizes intestinal motility, removes toxins from the body and nourishes beneficial microflora bacteria. It is the intestinal bacteria that break down dietary fiber for us, extracting nutrients and vitamins from them.
What is butyrate and why is it important to know about it?
The intestinal microbiota uses fiber as an energy source and synthesizes substances that are beneficial for the intestines and the whole body, such as butyrate . It is a short-chain fatty acid that prevents inflammation and feeds some gut bacteria.
How does the rainbow diet work?
The Rainbow Diet is a simple and easy way to eat healthy without restricting yourself. The ultimate goal is to add 30 different colorful plant foods to your diet each week.
At first glance this may seem like too much. In fact, not only vegetables and fruits are considered, but all plant products : nuts, berries, seeds, all legumes, cereals, herbs and spices.
You just need to plan one colorful plant-based food for each meal.
Most likely, you will end up with even more. It is better to use fresh and frozen vegetables and fruits, but in a pinch you can also resort to canned ones.
Atlas nutritionist Elizaveta Gilman, in her book about intuitive eating “ Make Peace with Food ,” shares a useful and important recommendation:
“Think about how you can vary your menu for the week. It is not necessary to radically change your diet: new spices, different culinary techniques for preparing food, a couple of atypical side dishes or salads a week are already a thing. To begin with, you can simply make it a rule, when you come to the supermarket, to buy one new product and be sure to try it. The food variety will also please your taste buds. By the way, the feeling of satisfaction after eating largely depends on whether you managed to surprise and pamper these little ones.”
So that you don’t have to search the Internet for products of every color, we have collected for you “rainbow” products in red, orange, yellow, green and violet-blue. Each color is divided into vegetables and fruits/berries.
Red foods
Research shows that red plant foods are beneficial for many health indicators. The pigment lycopene helps make tomatoes red and is good for cardiovascular health . And anthocyanins contribute to the color of raspberries and strawberries, and protect against inflammation .
Red vegetables
- Cabbage (red)
- Red bell pepper
- Red onion
- Red chicory (radicchio salad)
- A tomato
🧑🍳 Try our red pepper and red onion frittata recipe .
Red fruits and berries
- Watermelon
- Cowberry
- Cherry
- Pomegranate
- Red apples
- Red (blood) oranges
- Cranberry
- Red raspberry*
- Red Ribes
- Red pears
- Red plums
- Strawberry
- Pink grapefruit
* raspberries can also be yellow
🧑🍳 Add cranberries to your breakfast porridge or sprinkle pomegranate seeds on your salad like in this recipe .
Orange products
Orange foods contain phytonutrients similar to those found in red foods, such as beta-carotene. Orange-colored foods are good for reproductive health in men and women, support vision , and increase protection against certain types of cancer .
Orange vegetables
- Bell pepper (orange)
- Carrot
- Sweet potato
- Pumpkin
Orange fruits
- Apricots
- Oranges
- blood orange
- They hum
- Tangerines
- Mango
- Passion fruit
- Nectarines
- Papaya
- Peaches
- Persimmon
🧑🍳 Want some inspiration? Catch a recipe for pumpkin soup that will delight your taste buds and make your microflora bacteria happy.
Yellow products
Yellow foods are especially beneficial for digestive health . Promote the diversity of intestinal microflora, regulate intestinal motility and have a good effect on the glycemic index .
Yellow vegetables
- Bell pepper (yellow)
- Yellow tomatoes
- Ginger
- Corn
- Potato
- Onion (yellow)
Adding yellow is easy by choosing yellow tomatoes instead of red for your salad, or mixing the two colors.
yellow fruit
- Pineapples
- Bananas
- Pears
- Apples
- Yellow raspberry
- Yellow (white) currant
- Lemons
🧑🍳“ Kill” two colorful birds with one stone by making ice cream using just two ingredients according to our recipe .
Green products
Oxidative stress is associated with high blood pressure, atherosclerosis (narrowing of the arteries) and heart disease. The phytonutrients in green plant foods help protect the body from these problems.
Green vegetables
Nature has arranged everything in such a way that choosing these products is definitely not difficult for us.
Green vegetables
- Artichokes
- Avocado
- Edamame beans
- Bell pepper (green)
- Broccoli
- Green peas)
- Greens (cilantro, parsley, dill, green basil)
- Cabbage
- Celery
- Beans (green)
- Spinach
Green fruits (and more)
- Pears
- Green tea
- Kiwi
- Lyme
- Olives
- Apples (green)
Purple blue products
Purple and blue plant foods contain the same nutrients, which give them their unique colors. These same substances protect the brain and nervous system , and even affect mood .
Purple vegetables
- Eggplant
- Cabbage (purple)
- Turnip (purple)
- Beet
- Beans
Purple fruit
- Dove
- Blackberry
- Fig
- Plums/prunes
- Blue grapes/black raisins
- Blueberry
Atlas knows not only about the DNA of intestinal bacteria, but also about their taste preferences.
🧑🍳 Our prebiotic snack recipe is sure to please your microbiota. In return, microorganisms will take care of your health.
Our list is not exhaustive and there are much more “colored” foods, but this will be enough for the first step on the path to health.
The Atlas Microbiota Test will help you find out how your microbiota copes with its tasks . The test will evaluate protection against inflammation and 5 diseases, the ability to break down fiber, lactose and gluten, and synthesize vitamins.