Eating a diet that’s full of a variety of nutritious foods is one of the most important ways to support your overall health. But our bodies aren’t always great at actually absorbing and using all of the nutrients in our food, particularly when it comes to plant foods like fruits and veggies. With some smart planning, you can pair foods together that actually help your body get more of those precious nutrients out of your meals, dietitians say. Dietitian tip of the day: Pair your foods to get more nutrients The degree to which we can absorb nutrients from food — called bioavailability — depends on factors like our gut health, age and our cooking methods, registered dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick told TODAY.com previously. While we don’t always have control over bioavailability, we can increase the absorption of nutrients like vitamin D, iron and zinc by strategically pairing certain foods, she said. That means that with a little extra planning, we can actually get even more of those important nutrients from the food we eat. Diet Exercise Jun 8 5 foods to lower cholesterol that a cardiologist eats every day Diet Exercise May 17 Is beef tallow healthy? What cardiologists want you to know Why it matters Choosing nutrient-dense foods is only one part of healthy eating because our bodies don’t always absorb all the vitamins and minerals in those foods. When it comes to vitamin D, for example, the fact that this is a fat-soluble vitamin is a major factor, registered dietitian Grace Derocha said previously. Pairing vitamin D foods or supplements alongside fatty foods essentially helps your gut absorb the vitamin more easily, she explained. What’s more, vitamin D and vitamin K2 also help your body absorb and use calcium effectively, Derocha said. Piggy-backing nutrient-dense foods in this way can increase the bioavailability of a wider variety of those nutrients. How to get started There are a few key ways to pair your foods in order to help your body squeeze out and actually use all those nutrients. Specifically, the dietitians recommend: Pair foods rich in vitamin C with iron-rich plant foods. Try adding strawberries to your spinach salad, Kirkpatrick suggested, or have a lentil salad with a lemon olive oil dressing. Eat fatty foods with vitamins A, D, E and K. An easy way to do this is to drizzle olive oil on veggie-packed salads, or to top them with crunchy seeds or nuts. Almonds are an especially good choice, Derocha said, because they also contain magnesium to further support vitamin D absorption. Use spices like black pepper, garlic and ginger to increase the absorption of zinc, iron and the anti-inflammatory plant compound curcumin. Pair vitamin D with calcium, Derocha said. Try some fatty salmon with a kale salad or bok choy on the side. Not only do these pairings boost the flavors of your meals, but they also help you get even more of the good stuff out of the healthy foods you’re already eating. This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY: Eating eggs every day is healthy — if you keep these 3 things in mind, dietitians say What to eat in a day to avoid acid reflux, according to a dietitian 9 fruits that act as natural prebiotics for better gut health ...read more read less