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by Michael Keller

Have you had the right amount of fruits and veggies today? Maybe there was a side salad with lunch and a late afternoon apple, but how many servings is that from each category?

The thing is that only 11 percent of Americans eat the recommended servings of vegetables every day, while only 20 percent get enough fruit. So chances are that your answer to the first question is no. But if better health and a possibly longer life are some of your goals, then you need to start swallowing some more plants.

This serving counting and guesswork about whether the plant-based nutrients are getting into your system just won’t do. There might be a better way to know—go get your palm read. A research team has shown that a noninvasive laser can scan a palm to read whether a person is getting the right intake of healthy fruits and vegetables.

In a recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, scientists reported on their blue-laser diagnostic scanner that can measure phytonutrients in skin. Their study focused on quantifying the nutrients known as carotenoids, plant pigments that our bodies use for a number of health-maintaining metabolic functions.

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