Busy Mums Tips For Five Fruit And Vegetables A Day

Are you confused about exactly what counts as a portion of fruit and vegetables.  Well here is a quick guide to print out that you can refer to.

What is a portion?

 One portion is about 80 grams, which could be half a grapefruit, a slice of melon, a handful of grapes, an apple, two satsumas, three dried apricots or a tablespoon of raisins. One portion of veg could be three heaped tablespoons of peas, carrots or sweetcorn or a bowl of salad. A medium-sized glass of 100% fruit juice also counts.

What counts?

• Fresh, frozen, tinned and dried fruit and vegetables.

• Pure fruit and vegetable juices.

• Veg in ready meals, takeaways, pasta sauces and soups.

• Fruit in puddings.

• But watch out for added salt/ fat/ sugar in takeaways and ready meals - check out the labels. 

 What doesn't?

• More than one glass of juice - even if you drink lots of it during the day, juice has hardly any fibre and has loads of sugar which is bad for your teeth.

• More than one portion of beans or pulses a day, because they don't give the same mixture of vitamins and minerals as fruit and veg.

• Jam.  Vitamin pills and supplements, as they don't contain fibre.

• Munching your favourite fruit or vegetable five times a day. You need to eat a variety to get the maximum benefits from all the different nutrients.

  Are there any shortcuts?

• Slice banana into your cereal.

• Snack on an apple, banana, handful of grapes or raisins rather than a packet of crisps.

• Have a glass of orange juice.

• Dip veg sticks (e.g. carrots, celery) into salsa sauce.

• Stuff salad bits such as cucumber, lettuce and tomato into your sarnies.

• Add extra vegetables to pizza, pasta sauces and soups.

• Stir fries, stews and casseroles are any easy way of combining up to nine vegetables in one go. Replace stodgy puddings with a hunk of melon or a fruit salad. Make a smoothie - blend low fat natural yoghurt with two handfuls of blackberries, blueberries or raspberries.

• Make fruit kebabs by threading bite-sized chunks of apples, pears, strawberries and pineapple onto wooden skewers - you could even grill or barbeque them.