In the news/top tips for tucking into ten portions of fruit & veg a day...

In the news: eating ten 80g portions of fruit and veg a day may reduce the risk of premature death and disease, researchers say...

Although tucking into ten portions of fruit and veg a day may seem like an unsustainable solution to decreasing the incidence of premature death and disease, increasing our intake of these fibre-rich foods is far easier than many may think. 

In order to ensure that you eat and enjoy the recommended rainbow, here are our top three tips for munching more micronutrient-rich foods...

1.Create sensible snacks.
Raw fruit and vegetables not only make speedy and satisfying snacks, but their fibre-rich properties can also prevent us from piling on the pounds by promoting a feeling of fullness - an action that leaves us less likely to overeat and/or satisfy our stomachs with the sugary 'food' sources that sabotage our silhouette.

2.Make moreish meals.
Adding a variety of vegetables to homemade meals such as soups, stews and sauces is a simple way to incorporate more micronutrient-rich foods into our daily diet. Consuming food sources containing vitamin C (think citrus fruits, tomatoes and strawberries) with main meals can also aid the absorption of iron - a mandatory mineral that's poorly absorbed from food.

3.Satisfy a sweet tooth.
Although swapping sugary sweet treats for fibre filled fruit may seem like a psychological struggle (particularly if we're prone to tucking into too many treats!), opting to satisfy our sweet tooth with delicious desserts derived from fresh fruit - think a tasty fruit tart, banana split stuffed strawberries and satsuma segments dunked in dark chocolate - can not only assist weight loss (we can continue to eat and enjoy sweet treats without over consuming the energy dense desserts that tighten our trousers and trigger tooth decay), but increase our intake of the flavoursome foods that aid the prevention of premature death and disease.

Final thought: fruit juice and smoothies do not boast the same benefits as whole fruit and vegetables - this is because blended and juiced varieties are bursting with the type of sugar that we need to ditch from our daily diet, contain no fibre and only count as one portion of our daily recommended fruit and veg regardless of how much we consume (servings should be no more than one 150ml glass a day and consumed with main meals to decrease damage to teeth). 

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