Stuck in a food rut? You don’t have to go far to find some overlooked food choices that are easy to prepare, pack a nutritional wallop and avoid unhealthy fats.

We asked two veteran nutritionists to help us identify seven great foods most of us skip. Our consultants: American Dietetic Association spokeswoman Cindy Moore, R.D., of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation; and Institute of Food Technologists spokeswoman Christina Stark, R.D., of Cornell University.
Avocado

The avocado is high in fat, but most of the fat is the heart-healthy monounsaturated kind. We know the avocado tastes great, but outside of an occasional guacamole dip, few of us reach for this high-fiber food for salads or as a great side dish.

You’ll also get protein, a good dose of vitamins A and E, some B vitamins, lots of potassium and a dollop of copper. The rich and creamy avocado has been called the “chocolate” of fruits.
Sweet potato

At Thanksgiving, we dash for sweet potatoes as if they’re available just once a year. But you can bake or microwave these tubers anytime for a super dose of vitamin A — five times the daily value (DV) the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends.

Sweet potatoes also offer some vitamin C and a significant helping of important minerals, including calcium, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and iron. And this tasty fat-free combo of nutrients brightens your plate.
Soybeans

The FDA recently added soy to the list of foods that can make health claims because of its value in reducing the risk of heart disease. Soy is high in protein — one cup of beans can fill 40 percent of the DV for protein — and the bean also serves up generous helpings of fiber, calcium, potassium, iron, phosphorus and magnesium. How you eat this versatile food is up to you — cooked and mixed in salads or casseroles, roasted for snacks, or in tofu, tempeh or soy milk. Soy has some fat, but very little saturated fat.

The use of soy products to treat symptoms of menopause is controversial. While it may improve symptoms for some women, the phytoestrogens (plant estrogens) that may help relieve hot flashes may also increase the risk of breast cancer.
Dried figs

Tasty as Fig Newton cookies are, figs stand on their own. They provide high-fiber, topped with some B vitamins and iron, finished off with abundant potassium and calcium. Five figs give you as much calcium as half a glass of milk.

What to do with a fig? Pop a few in your mouth, sneak them into casseroles or replace raisins with them in a salad.
Lentils

We never think of this legume unless it’s in our soup. But put lentils in rice or casseroles and you’ve added one of the highest-protein and highest-fiber foods around.

A cup of lentils supplies about 40 percent of the DV for protein and about 65 percent of the DV for fiber. The lentil is high in potassium, calcium and iron, and a good source of B vitamins, phosphorus and copper. The fat content? Zero.
Kale

Dark, leafy green vegetables are an acquired taste. Maybe now’s the time to see if your taste buds have matured to accommodate this no-fat, low-calorie, super-high-vitamin-A food.

One cup of kale (boiled, but not overcooked) gives you double the DV for vitamin A. You’ll also get some vitamin C, a small amount of B vitamins and a generous amount of calcium. Look for kale’s healthy but ignored cousins: Swiss chard, mustard greens and collards.
Barley

Here’s another soup secret we tend to forget despite its claim to protein, fiber, potassium, phosphorus and iron. One cup supplies 25 percent of the DV for fiber.

Eat pearled barley as a side dish instead of rice, use it for a hearty casserole, or boil it to create a unique base for a stir-fry meal. And look at the high nutritional content of some other forgotten but powerful grains, like quinoa and amaranth.

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There are foods that can boost your weight loss program and are super for you. Include them in your diet as often as possible — try to add at least two or three each day to your daily menu. Here are 10 “superfoods” to help you lose weight and feel great:

Garlic
This is a powerful organosulfate that’s important in detoxification. It will help clean your body of leftover chemical residue from drugs or pollutants, secondhand smoke, and metabolites from alcohol.

Tofu
It’s made from soybeans, which have all the benefits of other beans, including stabilizing blood-sugar levels to prevent diabetes. Try stir-frying it.

Mushrooms
Maitake and shiitake mushrooms are among the best sources of beta-glucan, which is known to stimulate the immune system. They also contain the protein lectin, which hinders cancer-cell growth.

Blueberries
These have an extraordinary amount of anti-oxidants, but many people are surprised to learn that one of their compounds, flavonoids, makes you smarter by boosting neuron signals in your brain. Look for wild varieties, which pack more antioxidants.

Kale
Possibly the healthiest food on earth, kale is rich in isothiocyanates, a phytochemical that suppresses tumor growth. Kale also contains indoles, nitrogen compounds that prevent lesions from converting into cancer cells.

Flaxseed
“In addition to omega-3 fatty acids, flaxseed contains lignans, which are antioxidants that suppress tumor growth. If you can’t find flaxseed cracked, buy it whole, grind it, and then sprinkle a teaspoon over cereal.

Beans
Like other legumes, kidney and garbanzo beans are high in saponins, which are compounds that shield your DNA from invasion by so-called free radicals—unstable atoms that damage tissue and are associated with cancer.

Carrots
Besides beta-carotene—which helps prevent many types of cancer—carrots contain falcarinol, a chemical that slows the growth of cancer cells.

Tomatoes
Eat ripe tomatoes every summer. They’re loaded with lycopene (an important phytochemical with antioxidant properties) and glutamic acid (an amino acid), which work together to prevent prostate cancer. Shop for organic varieties with a deep red color at your local farmers’ market.

Strawberries
If you do a lot of grilling, eat strawberries. They’re high in folic acids that scavenge the carcinogenic amines that are created when meat is cooked over high temperatures. They’re one of the most important foods to buy organic, because they have a unique capacity for leaching pesticides.

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Do You Take Vitamins?

The side effects modern medicines cause can be strange, painful and scary.

Nausea, fatigue, sleeplessness, and many other side effects can often be just as bad as the condition the drugs are supposed to be fighting.

Almost half of all Americans take at least one prescription drug, according to statistics collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Some doctors who have been researching how to treat side effects have come to the conclusion that the cause of some is pharmaceutical-induced nutrient depletion. Basically, the drugs strip the body of some vitamins and minerals, causing problems.

Doctors Don’t Know

Dr. Frederic Vagnini, who co-authored “The Side Effects Bible: The Dietary Solution to Unwanted Side Effects of Common Medications,” said he believes many side effects can be solved through nutritional supplements and dietary sources.

“This could be a big reason why we have what we call the walking wounded, and why so many people on drug therapy are having so many problems,” said Vagnini.

The problem, said Vagnini, is that most doctors are not aware of the problem and don’t give their patients any guidance about what nutrients could be depleted by their prescription drugs.

“It’s very simple. Most doctors consider vitamins and nutrients a waste of time,” said Vagnini. “Second of all, there’s not enough health education in the field.”

Vagnini said pharmacists also by and large are unaware of the issue of nutrient depletion.

“When I did a presentation at Walgreens and Rite-Aid, they said, ‘Well, our pharmacists don’t have time. They’re making prescriptions and counting pills,’” said Vagnini. “It’s not like the old days, where they can counsel patients.”

Vagnini even said he was unaware of the issue.

“I, practicing in nutrition for 20 years, didn’t even know about it until the (publishing) company asked me to do the book. It’s like a hidden secret,” said Vagnini.

Some common prescription drugs can cause a long list of nutrient depletion. For example, according to Vagnini, common aluminum antacids such as Maalox and Mylanta can cause a depletion of vitamin A, vitamin D, folic acid, calcium, chromium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc.

Statin drugs, like Lipitor, Mevacor, Zocor and Pravachol, are meant to treat elevated levels of cholesterol. Vagnini said that while these drugs are effective in treating cholesterol, they can lower levels of coenzyme Q10, which can be bad for the heart, brain and energy level.

“You have these millions of people on statin drugs. I don’t have to tell you how many millions, they are all getting their CoQ10 depleted,” said Vagnini. “And the major side effects from statin drugs are liver problems and also statin-induced myopathy, which is muscle pain and weakness. Other problems include fatigue and memory problems.”

Patients Surprised

Ray Yingling, who runs a vitamin store in Madison, Wis., called Vita Source, said he uses guides like Vagnini’s “The Side Effects Bible” on an almost daily basis to help customers who suffer from pharmaceutical side effects. He also said that his customers are constantly surprised to find out their drugs could be depleting vital nutrients from their body.

“The doctors and the pharmacists are not educated in drug-induced nutrient depletion. It’s not talked about,” said Yingling. “Why aren’t people told this stuff? Why isn’t your doctor or pharmacist telling you that your drug depletes zinc out of your body? It’s because vitamins aren’t deemed important. Unless it’s very, very well known, doctors are clueless. They think drugs and surgery can solve all of the problems that we have.”

Yingling said that once he puts his customers on a vitamin plan that will replenish their bodies of the nutrients their drug could be robbing them of they usually see an improvement.

“I’ll show them a list of the potential depletion problems of their drug, and they’ll say, ‘Oh, magnesium depletion can cause muscle cramps and depression?’” said Yingling. “And they’re reading all of the depletion problems and they’ll say, ‘Oh, that’s me.’”

Vagnini said he has been able to help countless patients with their side effects by telling them to take certain vitamins and eat certain foods.

“I see it in my practice on a daily basis. ‘Oh, Doc, I’m on Lipitor, or I’m on Vasotec or Wellbutrin, or Vioxx … and I don’t feel well.’ And we feel that it’s not all drug-induced deficiencies, but in part its side effects seem to be related to nutrient deficiencies,” said Vagnini.

Vagnini said he does not think the subject will receive any more attention from the medical community in the near future because “medicine is always 20 years behind the times.”

He also said it is hard to say how many side effects are directly related to nutrient depletion, but that “hopefully there’ll be some education. The book which I wrote did OK. It wasn’t a best seller like some of my other books

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