Thursday 17 May 2012

Fruit And Veg - Just One More campaign

We all know we're supposed to aim for 5-a-day but if you find that hard, adding just one more portion of fruit or vegetables does sound more achievable, especially if you follow these top tips !

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To celebrate National Vegetarian Week 21 - 27 May, we're urging everyone to aim for 'just one more' portion of fruit or veg and help to prevent a range of conditions including heart disease. Spring is a great time to start eating more fruit and vegetables, there are so many varieties available that there's something for everyone. So, follow these tips to help you manage to take in 'just one more'.

Start the day with a chopped up banana, pear or kiwi fruit added to your breakfast cereal.

If you snack on biscuits or crisps, swap these for carrot, cucumber or pepper sticks. Enjoy them raw or with a low-fat hummus or salsa dip.

Having a barbecue? Prepare kebabs loaded with vegetables such as peppers, onions and mushrooms. Barbecued fruit kebabs also work a treat for a healthy alternative dessert.

Add a couple of handfuls of frozen peas, sweetcorn or diced swede to a home-made chilli, curry or Bolognese sauce.

Don't forget that drinks count too, so make your own smoothie or milkshake and experiment with different fruit combinations.

Buy an unusual or exotic fruit or vegetable each week and try different ways to cook or serve it, for a family taster session.

Remember, raw vegetables such as green beans, mange tout and cauliflower add a great crunch to a salad.

Be adventurous - make fruit skewers for dessert using kiwi fruit, melons and pineapple chunks and drizzle with mango pulp or raspberry coulis, perfect for a refreshing dessert.

Try adding spinach or courgettes to a pasta bake for a scrumptious boost.

Health experts recommend that we eat at least five portions from a wide variety of fruit and vegetables every day. These can be fresh, frozen, tinned or dried and remember too that pure fruit juice counts as one of your 5-a-day. So, with such a wonderful array of colours, tastes and textures, not forgetting those important vitamins, minerals and antioxidants needed to support a health heart, it's not difficult to include 'just one more' today and everyday.

For more information and advice about healthy living, contact Heart Research UK:

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16 comments:

  1. I'm not sure how much nutritional value is left but I often add grated courgettes, carrots or beet root to homemade cupcakes!
    (Emma @beachpebble)

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  2. try nakd bars and innocent smoothies for fruit fixes, baked beans, carrot sticks and hummus, stir fried bean sprouts and corn cobs are my fave veggies :)

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  3. I have 8 a day but i am a veggie haha :)

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    Replies
    1. I'm a vegetarian too so it is shameful that I spent most of the past few years eating around 2 portions a day max. Lately though I have improved so I hopefully don't have to hand my veggie credentials in yet!

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  4. My son loves the cheap packet noodles (really bad I know) but I bulk it up by adding carrots, tomatoes, sweetcorn, even cucumber to the bowl, and he loves the noodles so much he will eat them all.

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    1. That's what I always do, sneak in as much veg as possible where it won't be noticed !!

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  5. Great ideas, I became allergic to apples, kiwi and pineapple a few years ago and really struggle to get anywhere near my 5 a day!

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  6. Great article! I try and have my five a day, but some days I don't have it! :) x

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  7. We were eating really healthily but food costs had gone up so much we cant afford to buy all veg and fruit. I feel really guilty but going into bebt and loosing the house and arguing about money would affect the children more. @jessws2011

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    1. Do you have a local fruit/veg market? I can easily get 3 different types of fruit in large amounts for around £3. And at the end of the market day they reduce everything too, so- bargains.

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    2. I love hitting the market right at the end and buying up the crates of damaged fruit for rock bottom prices, then coming home and deciding what to make with a crate full of over-ripe peaches or strawberries or whatever !!

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  8. I make bread pudding made with a fruit loaf. I add fresh onions, peppers, broccoli, mangetout etc to sauces to stretch a meal. It's very important to get the kids to eat more fruit and veg. I tend to buy green veg like cabbage, broccoli and spinach because they contain a lot of iron.

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  9. For the past month or so I have usually been managing to eat at least 5 if not 6 portions. I realised how easy it is (it was usually laziness stopping me before)- in the evening I have an apple, two plums, three dried apricots and some cherries or grapes. In the day I have a bowl of weight watchers vegetable soup, and in the morning I have a glass of juice and at lunch some tomatoes. Easy!
    Shame it didn't help my acne though. :(

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  10. I think for those of us who cant afford to buy much fresh fruit,having a steady supply of onions,garlic and celery for a base for a soup (stock cubes too) and then using whatever vegetables are lurking in the fridge you are guaranteed to get some nourishment! Soups are reasonably cheap and they freeze! Ive even gone so far as to make a BLT with dandelion leaves instead of lettuce (picked away from traffic and pollution), they are perfectly edible, taste a bit like spinach and a rich source of iron!

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    Replies
    1. I was just thinking earlier about blackberries too ! Not until the end of the summer though !

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  11. Lots of fabulous ideas from everyone, some days I still struggle to make it to 5-a-day

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