Are fruits and vegetables a component of your daily diet? You may be eating more meat and carbohydrates than you have to, but without fruits, that diet is still insufficient. You can't depend on convenience foods to supply you all the nourishment you need. Besides, they have too many fats and preservatives, and these pose health risks when taken in large doses. You need to avail of fruit benefits for a healthier way of life.

There are no universally agreed upon characteristics to define what a fruit is. Botanically speaking, fruits come from flowering plants, and are meant to spread seeds around, and spread plants around wider areas. In dietary terms, foods that come from plants, contain fleshy pulp and can be eaten raw are considered fruits. In culinary schools, many foods treated like fruits do not comply with either definition, such as rhubarb or pine nuts.

Fruits are an abundant source of fiber. Fiber is the component in fruit that can't be digested. When it enters the body, it helps facilitate digestion and discharge of bodily waste. It can help alleviate digestion related illnesses, like loose bowels, dyspepsia and diarrhea. It also makes good preventive medicine for these medical conditions.

Fruits are also a rich source of nutrients, which the body absorbs and utilizes to provide much needed functions. These comprise vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Each fruit has different nutrients and in different portions, so it's best to use a fruits alphabetical list to find out which fruits have the nutrients you need.

It needs to be clear that you can't get these fruit benefits in fruit flavored convenience foods. Food companies try to make fruit colors, odors and flavors in overwhelmingly high amounts, more than what you could get naturally. This is done so drastically that they are able to conceal unwanted ingredients. Most consumers won't find out about this and ignorantly consume high amounts of high fructose corn syrup, salt or monosodium glutamate in these foods. Multivitamins may have been designed to provide recommended daily allowances, but the body still gets the maximum benefit eating these from natural sources.