If you ever needed an excuse to put more fruits and vegetables into your diet, take your cue from the American Heart Association, which recommends that you add more plant-based foods to your diet to reduce your risk of heart disease. Fruits and vegetables can be appreciated both for what they do and do not contain.
Many plant foods are high in folate, a B vitamin that is beneficial to the heart.
Plant foods also contain phytochemicals that may act as antioxidants in your body. In addition, most are high in dietary fiber, which binds cholesterol and helps move it out of your system. Plant foods do not have any cholesterol. Fat is minimal. Very few fruits or vegetables have more than a gram of fat per half- cup serving.