Am I eating enough fruit and vegetables?

Fruit and veg are tasty and nutritious and we should all be aiming to eat at least five servings a day.

What counts as a serving of fruit and veg?

The following is one serving of fruit or veg:

• One small bowl of cooked or tinned fruit
• Two tablespoons of cooked vegetables or salad
• One small bowl of homemade vegetable soup
• One medium sized piece of fruit
• ½ a glass of fruit juice

Ways to eat more fruit and veg

Breakfast

• Have a glass (125ml) of pure, unsweetened fruit juice
• Add chopped banana, raisins or apple to your cereal
• Mashed banana on toast makes a great breakfast
• Finish breakfast with some fruit – whatever type tickles your fancy
• Fruit smoothies: make your own by mixing fruit, a banana and yoghurt together in a blender
• Remember, no matter how many smoothies or fruit juices you have in a day, it only counts for one of the five servings of fruit and veg recommended per day. This is because you lose some of the vitamins and the fibre in juicing

Lunch

• Pizza or pasta with added vegetables (try adding corn, peppers, extra chopped tomato or having a salad on the side)
• Have a side salad (of whatever veg you like: cucumber, tomato, lettuce, peppers, celery, cucumber…) along with your lunch
• Fruit
• Choose a vegetarian option if you’re eating out: that could be a big salad, vegetarian lasagne, vegetarian burger, etc. Or you could make the same stuff at home
• Try lettuce, tomato and onion in a sandwich

Snack

• Fruit
• Try raw vegetables chopped into bite size pieces and chopped fruit with cottage cheese or yoghurt
• Try small portions of dried fruit, seeds and nuts. Check out your local shops for special offers. Remember to watch out for salty or chocolate coatings
• Hummus dip with crackers or vegetable sticks

Dinner

• Have a side salad (of whatever veg you like: cucumber, tomato, lettuce, peppers, celery, cucumbr) along with your dinner
• Add vegetables to every meal you cook: in soups, on pizzas, in casseroles and stews, along with meat or fish
• Keep lots of different veg and fruit options in your kitchen. Stock up on fresh, tinned and frozen varieties every time you go shopping
• Finish dinner off with a fruit based dessert. For example, try stewed fruit with low fat custard

Find out more about sticking to a balanced diet.

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