Not all peppers are equal: Colors reveal hidden health benefits

Peppers are great additions to stews, crunch on sandwiches, or served with your favorite dips. They come in many names, or rather, many colors. It might seem like the choice is mainly an aesthetic issue, but it's also worth paying attention to its nutritional properties.

Not all peppers are equal, and I don't just mean their size or shape. When choosing a vegetable in the store, it's also worth considering the color. Many people mistakenly believe there are no differences between yellow, red, and green peppers. While the taste is similar, the nutritional properties can differ. Although all pepper colors are valuable, each contains slightly different treasures.

In addition to adding flavor and color to our dishes, they provide us with many valuable vitamins and minerals. They contain vitamins A, C, E, and K, folic acid, fiber, antioxidants, and minerals such as potassium and magnesium.

Regular consumption of peppers can support the immune system, positively affect vision, support heart health, and reduce the risk of many chronic diseases. It is worth incorporating them into daily meals while considering our chosen colors. Each is healthy, but specific differences can help better match the vegetable to your body's needs.

The color of the peppers is a result of their ripening. All peppers, whether red, yellow, or green, come from the same plant. The difference lies in when they were picked. The longer a pepper ripens on the plant, the more pigments it produces, and its color becomes more intense. The earliest picked are green, then they transition to yellow and orange and finally saturated with red.

The sweetest and most aromatic is the red pepper. It also contains a lot of lycopene, a strong antioxidant that gives the pepper its red color and is associated with a reduced risk of heart disease. The pepper also has a high content of vitamin C, potassium, and beta-carotene. Because it is the ripest, it has the most nutrients.

Green pepper is also a source of vitamin A and fiber. It is harder and crunchier and contains more water and slightly fewer calories than red. It works great in salads, soups, and sauces. Yellow pepper combines the characteristics of both colors. Like them, it has lots of vitamins and nutrients. It contains less sugar than red pepper but more than green. Regardless of the color, pepper is low in calories and rich in water and fiber, making it an excellent addition to a healthy diet.

There is no single "best" pepper. The choice of color depends on our preferences and what we currently have. It is essential to reach for peppers regularly, regardless of their color.