Five a Day
Why Five-a-day?
Fruit and vegetables as part of a balanced diet provide us with
many vitamins, minerals and fibre - all important ingredients in
keeping us healthy. It is recommended that we eat at least five
portions a day. This will help protect against coronary heart
disease and certain cancers.
This website provides information on how to include the correct
amount and variety of fruit and vegetables in your diet with
detailed serving sizes and tasty and versatile tips.
How can I eat more fruit and vegetables?
- Why not start the day with a glass of fruit juice with your
breakfast or some sliced fruit added to your cereal.
- Keep a piece of fruit handy for those mid-morning munchies - a
banana is packed full of energy
- At lunchtime, try to include some vegetables or salad in your
sandwiches. How about tuna and sweetcorn, egg and salad or cottage
cheese and pineapple for a change?
- In colder weather, try a bowl of hot vegetable soup and a roll
for lunch.
- For tea, why not try adding a few slices of vegetables such as
peppers, mushrooms or courgettes to your favourite pizza before you
cook it and serve it with a crisp salad and coleslaw.
- Add extra chopped vegetables to a ready-made pasta sauce.
- Desserts made from stewed fruit are quick and easy to make,
especially if cooked in a microwave. Served with custard or a
spoonful of yoghurt for the finishing touch
- Keep a bowl of fruit where it can be seen - it will be much
easier for you and the family to eat some rather than reaching for
the biscuit tin
- If time is short, tins of fruit and vegetables are a quick and
useful option
- Variety is the key to enjoying fruit and vegetables and
combining lots of different colours and tastes helps make meals
more interesting and attractive
Variety is the spice of life and to maintain a balanced diet you
should try to aim for 5 combined servings of fruit and vegetables.
These can be found in dried, fresh, tinned and frozen produce as
well as soups, juices, cereals and ready-prepared meals. But
convenience foods can also be high in added sugar, fat and salt, so
it is important to always check the nutrition information on food
packaging.
For further information on healthy eating visit the
Department of Health
website or the Food Standards Agency
website.
