The 12 Top Family Foods
Admittedly, any “top family food” list will have a bit of bias based on personal preferences, but we have tried to honor certain criteria in selecting our 12 top family foods. We believe that the key to healthy eating is to fill your plate with foods that provide high quality nutrition, those foods which are most nutrient dense. This means foods that pack a lot of nutrition alongside relatively few fats and calories.
To be on our list, a food must do the following:
- Supply a significant amount of nutrition per serving
- Supply nutrients vital to bodily functions
- Supply nutrients that keep you healthy
- Be versatile (able to be prepared in a variety of tasty ways)
- Be readily available at a reasonable price
- Contain minimal amounts of substances that may be harmful to health (e.g. hydrogenated fats, saturated fats, added sugars)
These foods are listed in alphabetical order, not ranked according to which are the most nutritious:
| TOP FOOD | IMPORTANT NUTRIENTS |
| California Avocado | B vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin E, potassium, folate, fiber |
| Chickpeas (especially tasty when made into hummus) | protein, fiber, folic acid, vitamin B-6, calcium, zinc, and iron |
| Eggs | protein, vitamin A, riboflavin, vitamin B-12, folic acid |
| Fish (salmon, tuna) | protein, niacin, vitamin B-12, zinc, iron, omega-3 fatty acids |
| Flax seeds and flax oil | omega-3 fatty acids, seeds also rich in protein, fiber, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin |
| Blueberries | rich source of antioxidants, blueberries are known as the brain berry |
| Lentils | protein, fiber, riboflavin, vitamin B-6, folic acid, iron; most intestines-friendly legume |
| Spinach | rich in folic acid, fiber, vitamin C and calcium |
| Tofu (firm) | protein, fiber, vitamin A, thiamin, folic acid, calcium, zinc, iron, unsaturated fats, anti- cancer phytonutrients |
| Tomatoes | vitamin A, vitamin C, health-promoting phytonutrients, especially lycopene |
| Whole grains | protein, fiber, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B-12, folic acid, zinc, iron |
| Yogurt (plain, nonfat) | protein, calcium, zinc, folic acid, riboflavin, Lactobacilli for colon health |
| HONORABLE MENTION | |
|---|---|
| Almonds | protein, fiber, riboflavin, calcium, zinc, iron, vitamin E, unsaturated fats |
| Artichokes | protein, fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, calcium, zinc, and iron |
| Broccoli | vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, beta carotene, anti-cancer phytonutrients |
| Cantaloupe | carotenoids, vitamin A, vitamin C, beta carotene |
| Garlic | heart-healthy and anticancer phytonutrients |
| Orange | fiber, calcium, vitamin A, folic acid, vitamin C, carotenoids |
| Papaya | fiber, vitamin C, folic acid, carotenoids |
| Peanut butter | protein, fiber, niacin, zinc, vitamin E |
| Peppers (sweet and hot) | vitamin A, vitamin C, B-6, health-promoting phytonutrients, folic acid |
| Pink grapefruit | vitamin C, fiber, carotenoids |
| Sunflower seeds | protein, unsaturated fats, fiber, niacin, folic acid, zinc, iron, vitamin E, selenium |
| Turkey | protein, niacin, B-12, zinc, iron |
Dr. Sears, or Dr. Bill as his “little patients” call him, has been advising busy parents on how to raise healthier families for over 40 years. He received his medical training at Harvard Medical School’s Children’s Hospital in Boston and The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, the world’s largest children’s hospital, where he was associate ward chief of the newborn intensive care unit before serving as the chief of pediatrics at Toronto Western Hospital, a teaching hospital of the University of Toronto. He has served as a professor of pediatrics at the University of Toronto, University of South Carolina, University of Southern California School of Medicine, and University of California: Irvine. As a father of 8 children, he coached Little League sports for 20 years, and together with his wife Martha has written more than 40 best-selling books and countless articles on nutrition, parenting, and healthy aging. He serves as a health consultant for magazines, TV, radio and other media, and his AskDrSears.com website is one of the most popular health and parenting sites. Dr. Sears has appeared on over 100 television programs, including 20/20, Good Morning America, Oprah, Today, The View, and Dr. Phil, and was featured on the cover of TIME Magazine in May 2012. He is noted for his science-made-simple-and-fun approach to family health.