How to get your 5 a day
If you’re based in the UK, I’m sure you’re familiar with the ‘5 a day’ campaign run by the government. Its goal is to encourage everyone to eat more fruit and veg, by aiming for 5 portions of fruit and veg every day.
The magic number 5 was based on research that found 400g of
fruit and veg was beneficial to health. This 400g was divided into 5, 80g
portions. So 80g of a fruit or vegetable will count towards 1 of your 5 a day.
Benefits of 5 a day:
Eating more fruit and veg is always a good idea, and there’s
plenty of evidence to back this up. Research has found that eating more fruit and
veg can lead to:
- Reductions in risk of heart disease
- Reductions in risk of premature death
- Reductions in risk of developing certain cancers
So that sounds like a good enough reason to try and get more
into your diet!
What counts as your 5 a day?
Fresh, frozen, dried, and canned fruit and veg all count
towards your 5 a day. You could have 5 portions of fruit in a day, and it would
all count, but a varied diet is the best way to get lots of nutrients. So, a
mix of fruit and veg is your best bet. Here are some examples of what counts as
1 portion:
- 2 plums
- 2 clementines
- 7 strawberries
- 1 apple
- 1 banana
- 1 pear
- 30g of dried fruit* – about 1 heaped tablespoon
- 3 heaped tablespoons of cooked veg e.g., peas or sweetcorn
- 7 cherry tomatoes or 1 medium tomato
- 8 cauliflower florets
- 5cm piece of cucumber
- 3 heaped tablespoons of beans
- A cereal bowl of salad leaves
The quantities would be roughly the same for tinned or
frozen produce. If buying tinned, be sure to check that it’s tinned in the fruit’s
juices and not syrup.
*A quick note about dried fruit – while it counts as 1 of
your 5, you should aim to have it with meals and not as a snack. Dried fruit is
a more concentrated form of sugar and can damage your teeth. Having it with a
meal means your teeth aren’t continuously exposed to sugar.
A 150ml portion of fruit juice counts too. But it’s classed
as one portion no matter how much you drink. This is to discourage people from
drinking lots of fruit juice, as while it does contain nutrients, it’s very
high in sugar. The sugar in fruit juice is more easily available for your body
to digest, as juicing removes the fibre in fruit. But fruit juice can be enjoyed
in moderation.
Also be sure to check that you’re drinking 100% fruit juice
and not a juice drink. As juice drink is a mix of water, fruit juices, and
sugar, and won't count in your 5 a day.
80g of beans/legumes count also. But, similarly to fruit
juice, they’ll only count towards 1 portion of your 5 a day no matter how much
you have. This is because they contain fewer nutrients than fruit and veg. But
don’t let this put you off, beans and pulses are a good source of plant based
protein, and fibre!
Tips to get your 5 a day:
Most people don’t get their 5 a day, so I thought I’d give
some tips to help.
Snack on fruit or veg: this is an easy way to eat more fruit
and veg during the day. And it’s a more nutritious option than lots of other
snack options like crisps or cereal bars. Examples of snacks include: berries
and yoghurt, a banana and a handful of nuts, a portion of grapes and cheese
cubes, hummus and carrot sticks, roasted spiced chickpeas, or celery sticks and
peanut butter.
Try to include veg at every meal: adding in extra veg
wherever you can will be a big help to reaching your 5. You could add a tin of
lentils to your usual Bolognese, fry some tomato and add to your omelette, or
chop up carrots and add to your curry for example. If you’re having a cold meal
like a sandwich, then you could add a side salad to give it a boost.
Add fruit to breakfast: having fruit at breakfast is a great
way to start the day and get you to 5 a day. A lot of breakfast meals are easy
to add fruit into. Think banana slices on toast, frozen berries in your
porridge, or raisins in your cereal.
Make food from scratch when you can: making meals from
scratch means you can add more fruit or veg to it and get more of your 5 a day.
For example, chilli, pasta sauces, or curries can be made with tinned chopped
tomatoes which will count towards your 5. As the jarred sauces you can buy
won’t count. And you can add extra veg or beans/legumes into the sauce for
another portion.
Supercharge your suppers: some meals have multiple portions
of veg in them so this can help you get to 5. Stir fries, salads, and soup all
contain lots of different veg and you can be as creative as you like with the
veg used. Another way to get multiple portions at once is with dishes like
stews or casseroles. Veg like carrots, parsnips, leeks, mushrooms, and
butternut squash will do well here.
Swap out your potatoes: white potatoes do contain nutrients, but unfortunately,
they don’t count as 1 of your 5 as they’re too starchy. Depending on what meal
you're having you could swap potatoes for something like sweet potato,
butternut squash, or swede. A sweet potato mash will make a great topping for
your shepherd’s pie.
Sample day of eating getting your 5 a day:
As an example of how you can add fruit and veg into your
day, I thought I’d show a sample day of eating.
Breakfast: porridge with peanut butter and sliced banana = 1
portion
Lunch: chunky vegetable soup with a bread roll = 1 portion
Dinner: chicken and veg stir fry = 2 portions
Afters: stewed fruit with yoghurt and granola = 1 portion
Hopefully this shows you it can be easier than you think to
get your 5 a day.
Key points:
- The 5 a day campaign aims to get people eating more fruit and veg daily.
- 80g of fruit or veg counts as 1 portion. 150ml of fruit juice, and 80g of beans also counts as 1 portion no matter how much you have.
- Benefits of getting 5 portions of fruit and veg include reduced risk of heart disease and death.
- Ways to get your 5 a day include: snacking on fruit and veg, trying to have fruit or veg with every meal, and making food from scratch when you can so you can add more fruit or veg.
I hope you enjoyed this blog post and it’s given you some
easy ways to get your 5 a day.
Bye for now! 👋
References:
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/5-a-day/why-5-a-day/
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/5-a-day/5-a-day-what-counts/
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/5-a-day/portion-sizes/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5837313/
https://www.bda.uk.com/resource/fruit-and-vegetables-how-to-get-five-a-day.html
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