Healthy fall foods to add variety to your meals

Pumpkin and orange-fleshed winter squash are practical red-and-orange vegetable choices. Their carotenoids include beta-carotene, which the body can convert to vitamin A. That nutrient fact is not a promise that one food will prevent illness or change performance.

Roast cubes, blend cooked squash into soup, or use plain pumpkin in oatmeal. Compare labels on sweetened canned fillings, which are different from plain pumpkin puree.

Apples and pears travel well and can add whole-fruit variety to breakfast, lunch, or a snack. Eat them as they are, slice them into a grain bowl or salad, or bake them with spices instead of assuming a fruit-based dessert is automatically low in added sugar.

Sweet potatoes are a starchy vegetable and orange varieties are another food source of carotenoids. Roast wedges, add cooked cubes to a bowl, or mash them with savory seasonings. Portion and preparation still matter to the meal as a whole.

Brussels sprouts are one way to vary the vegetables on a fall plate. Halve and roast them, shred them for a slaw, or saute them until tender. Calling them a cancer-fighting food would overstate what an individual ingredient can prove, so this guide does not make that claim.

Fresh or frozen cranberries are tart. Dried cranberries, sauces, juices, and baked products can contain substantially different amounts of added sugar, so compare the product label rather than treating every cranberry food as equivalent.