Tips from Dr. Oz and Dr. Roizen

Perfect Your Picnic with These Foods

A day in the park with a group of friends or with wine and your honey (note to our wives -- we prefer the second option). What else could make it better? Really, not much. But your health will appreciate it if you do these things, too:

1. Cooked salsa -- The tomatoes in this condiment contain lycopene, a nutrient that may reduce your risk of heart disease. It’s found in tomatoes, but lycopene doesn’t really come out of tomatoes in full, healthy force until it’s cooked. Help your body absorb lycopene better by eating it with a little -- we repeat, a little -- healthy fat. How we love to get it: Mix some spicy salsa or pasta sauce (no sugar added varieties for either, please) into a mashed avocado, and add some chopped onions and garlic. This makes an easy guacamole dip for your celery to mate with.

2. Vinegar-based dressings -- Dress your potato salad with a tangy vinaigrette to blunt potatoes’ usual blood-sugar-spiking effect. Or if you want to be less tempted by dessert, splash some fresh greens with walnut or canola oil and vinegar; both components of this dressing will help you feel full longer.

3. Dark chocolate–dipped strawberries -- The perfect meal-ender, strawberries, may also reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease. Their flavonoids are known to thwart lousy LDL cholesterol and quell inflammatory processes that might lead to heart disease. The chocolate? It’s not just good; it may also help reduce blood pressure and inflammation in your blood vessels and immune system. Snuggle up with your honey and savor everything.