You've said any thoughts would be appreciated so here goes. I'm no
expert in science and nutrition but have thought about your questions
before from the standpoint of a cook.


For the 5 vegetables each day, I'd try to get one from each of the
following categories:


1) Something in the cabbage family. That could be broccoli, cabbage,
kale, collards, cauliflower, etc.

2) Something dark orange with beta carotene in it like carrots, sweet
pototaoes, rutabaga (also in the cabbage family), etc.

3) Dark leafy greens including spinach, kale, arugula, parsley or chard.

4) A squash like butternut, acorn, buttercup (also in category #2), or
zucchini.

5) A flavor punch like tomatoes or mushrooms.


I'm assuming that your question doesn't mean that you intend to eat ONLY
vegetables and not get grains, beans, eggs, dairy, etc. If that were
the case, I'd suggest more in the way of something with calories. That
leads to my thoughts on your second question. If you're getting plenty
of other foods besides the 5 vegetables, it is unlikely that you'd get
so much of any one of them that you'd be at risk for an overdose. You'd
be getting calories from other sources. If you were trying to limit
your total foods to the vegetables on the list and not eat anything
else, then a vitamin overdose wouldn't be the worst of your worries, but
I suppose it could happen.


--Lia


chris wrote:
> 2 questions for the experts out there...
>
> 1. I'm sure many of you would agree that an ideal diet should include
> a wide variety of vegetables everyday, but if for some reason you had
> to eat the same, say, 4 or 5 vegetables each day, which would be the
> healthiest to consume?
>
>
> 2. If my daily diet includes a big bowl of raw spinach, steamed
> broccoli, carrots, tomatoes, and other vegetables, am I at risk of
> overdosing on vitamin A, which I understand has high concentrations in
> spinach and other vegetables? If so, how do you recommend I change my
> diet?
>
>
> any thoughts would be much appreciated..
>
> thanks
> chris