Use
the five a day rule for healthy eating
The five a day rule is one of the most
important rules to healthy eating. The
five a day rule refers to the government’s recommendation that everyone eat at
least five servings a day of fruits and vegetables. At first blush, five a day seems like a
reasonable goal, but most people fail to eat sufficient amounts of these
important foods.
It is important to remember the many
advantages of fruits and vegetables when applying the five a day rule to your
own diet. For one thing, fruits and
vegetables taste great, contain fewer calories than many other foods and are
full of many important vitamins and minerals.
In addition, fruits and vegetables are colorful and beautiful, making
them great garnishes and salad toppings.
In addition, fruits and vegetables are easy
to prepare, even for the busiest individual.
In most cases, fresh fruits require no preparation at all, other than a
quick wash and perhaps peeling.
The five a day recommendation equates to
roughly two cups of fruit and two and a half cups of vegetables every day,
based on the average 2,000 calorie diet.
This is not a difficult goal to reach, but it is important to keep the
five a day goal in mind when grocery shopping, cooking and planning meals.
One great way to get started toward a five
a day lifestyle is with a delicious serving of 100% fruit juice every
morning. Apple juice, grapefruit juice
and orange juice are all excellent choices for both taste and nutrition.
Fruits and vegetables can also be used as
garnishes for other foods. Who doesn’t
enjoy a sliced strawberry or banana with their morning cereal? And fruits and vegetables make great snacks
as well. Whether you keep a couple of
apples at your desk or a selection of carrot and celery sticks in the fridge,
having fruits and vegetables readily at hand is a big part of the battle.
Of course variety is extremely important
when making any change to your diet, and many dietary changes fail due to
boredom. Constantly trying new varieties
of fruits and vegetables is a great way to keep yourself interested in your new
healthier way of eating. If you’ve never
had kiwi fruit or asparagus, for instance, why not give it a try?
Combining attractive colors, shapes and
sizes of fruits is another way to provide attractive and interesting meals for
yourself and your family. Combining
white grapes, red peppers and pineapple chunks can provide a delicious and
attractive salad.
It is important to provide constant variety
when implementing the five a day plan, particularly if you are cooking for a
family. Try making some interesting new
dishes, such as veggie pizza, made with fresh vegetables and whole wheat pizza
crust, a fresh vegetable wrap, vegetable stir fry or pasta with fresh
vegetables.
For those who think they are too busy to
incorporate five servings of fruits and vegetables a day into their diet, there
is help available. The many ready to
eat, prepackaged salad kits on the market make it easier than ever to create a
healthy salad on the go. Just keep a
bottle of your favorite low fat or nonfat salad dressing on hand and you can
enjoy a healthy salad anywhere and anytime.
Even fast food restaurants have made it
easier than every to eat healthy, with every major chain now offering at least
a few healthy menu items. In addition,
most grocery chains offer fresh salad bars where you can create your own
healthy lunch even if you’re pressed for time.
When creating your five a day healthy
lifestyle, remember that fruits and vegetables make great snacks. An apple, orange or banana provides both
great taste and excellent nutrition. In
addition, the natural sugars contained in fruits do not provide the sugar
high/sugar crash scenario all parents are familiar with.
Topping meals and salads with additional
fruits and vegetables is a great way to enhance your new five a day
lifestyle. Strips of green and red
peppers, broccoli florets, sliced carrots and cucumbers are all great additions
to pasta and potato salads. And of
course carrots, spinach, apple slices, orange slices, nectarines, pineapples
and raisins are all great additions to any salad.
In addition, adding fresh fruits to foods
you already eat is a great way to make such foods part of your new
lifestyle. Adding berries, bananas or
oranges to cereal and yogurt is a great way to make sure you meet your five a
day goal every day.