The UK guidelines were set by the Public Health England at 5 fruit or vegetables a day so that the goal could be achieved by more people. Are you struggling to achieve this? Below I have added tips on how to improve your chances.
Try keeping a record of how much fruit and veg you eat. Put a chart on the fridge with the household members names on it by day, then add the name of the item you had. You might find that you are better at it than you thought.
Let’s start with Breakfast
Everyone is always in a rush, so speed is at the heart of this meal. A quick bowl of cereal or porridge; toast and marmalade or a cereal bar. Does this sound like you? For your cereal bowl, you could add some fresh berries or a chopped apple. If you like porridge, how about this? Next time you are shopping, buy a bag of frozen fruit. Empty 100g (per person) of the frozen fruit into another pan and simmer until cooked, this takes about the same time as the porridge. If you think the fruit is a bit tart, you could add a spoonful of honey or maple syrup. For the toast, you could put fruit on top of peanut butter, I like banana, apple and blueberries, or if marmalade or jam is your thing, who is stopping you from topping it with fruit. Some fresh orange segments with your marmalade or strawberries with your ginger jam. If you take a cereal bar, then you could pick up an apple or a pear to ensure you only eat one bar as you will feel fuller with the fibre from the fruit. Finally, a 150ml glass of juice or a smoothie counts as 1-a-day.
Lunchtime!
Do you grab a sandwich from the deli or supermarket? Try to grab one with lettuce or salad in it, a BLT has Lettuce and tomato, so that counts. If your favourite sandwich doesn’t have any with it, you could but a bag of lettuce and add it when you get back to your desk. Try vegetable crudités instead of crackers with a dip. Take a small salad bowl as an extra for add you your lunch bowl. If you have kitchen facilities, then a bowl of vegetable soup is an excellent choice. Maybe finish your lunch with a piece of fruit.
Dinner
If you are following these tips, you’ve had 3 of your 5-a-day. So, you only need 2 more. Try mixing up your mash. What about having celeriac, carrot, sweet potato or swede mash. Frozen or canned veg count. Add an extra veg to the plate? Having pizza, then add sliced onions, peppers, artichoke, spinach, fresh tomatoes or even pineapple. Add a side salad to the plate if you think more are needed. If you are having a roast, then add carrots, onions and courgette to the roasting tray.
Snacks
Snacking works for some people, try and keep it healthy. 30g of nuts, fresh fruit, if you like dried fruit, it can be very sweet, so eat with some nuts to slow down the sugar release.
And Finally…
…That wasn’t so hard was it? Now that you are having your 5 a day, there’s no reason to stop there, this is only a guideline. The article below is a good follow on if you are easily achieving 5.
“Forget five a day, eat 10 portions of fruit and veg to cut risk of early death” The Guardian reports.
My husband and I attempted to do 10 a day for 2 weeks, if you fancy a giggle please read the article: https://attitudeonfood.co.uk/2017/07/24/the-10-a-day-challenge/
Please be aware that these tips don’t take into consideration that you may have an intolerance or allergy.
Bình luận