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5 A DAY (a.k.a FIVE-A-DAY)
So why
is eating fruits and vegetables so imporant?
In many
ways, this is the obvious bit
– a bit of a 'no brainer', one might say:
the more fruits and vegetables you eat, the better off you are likely to
be in terms
of health and nutrition. You'll also feel and look better, with the
nutrient, fibre
and water content of fresh fruits and vegetables keeping your digestive
system working the way it's intended. (All within reason, of course - eating a
bucketful of carrots every day may have some adverse effects...)
But don't just take our word for it:
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The United
Nations World
Health Organisation (WHO) promotes eating fruit and vegetables daily:
http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/en/
The UK's
National Health Service recommends 'five a day'
http://www.5aday.nhs.uk/
as does
the US government-sponsored website
http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/
endorsed by the
Department of Health and the National Cancer Institute.
Numerous
health and nutrition related research organisations and charities
endorse this, for example Cancer Research UK:
http://info.cancerresearchuk.org/healthyliving/dietandhealthyeating/fiveaday/?a=5441
Last but
not least, various supermarket chains are also promoting the 'cause', eg.:
http://www.waitrose.com/food/healthandnutrition/healthyeating/varyingyourdiet/5aday.aspx
http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/food/healthylifestyle/eatinghealthily/fiveaday/5adaypage1.htm
http://www.tesco.com/health/food/healthy_eating/principles/essential_foods/five_a_day.html?
The way
it works is simple:
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Eat
fruits and vegetables every day, at least five portions (see below
for some examples of a 'portion'). Any
fruit or vegetable counts, with only a few obvious
exceptions. Also some items which
aren't strictly speaking fruits or vegetables still count, for
example mushrooms, seaweed, wheatgrass, sprouted seeds and beans,
etc.
-
While
fresh fruits and vegetables are your best choice where
possible, frozen and canned ones also count
– in fact, some frozen
products such as peas and sweet corn may even be more nutritious
than the fresh variety, especially if the latter have spent many days or
weeks in the food supply chain.
-
Fruit
and vegetable juices (real ones, that is, not 'juice drinks' which may or may not
have much real fruit-based juice in them) also count, but only as
one portion per day
– in
other words, even if you drink several portions of fruit juice, you
can only count them as one. (Why? So that you don't
overdo the juices at the expense of whole fruits and vegetables,
which all have plenty of important beneficial nutrients, fibre,
etc.; for the same reason it is better to drink juices that contain
the 'flesh' of the fruit).
-
Dried
fruits such as raisins, prunes, dried apricots and dried berries also count, but
again only as one portion per day. (Why? Because they
don't have all the nutrients of fresh fruits. NB: They can
still count towards your daily colours
intake.)
-
Beans
and pulses (lentils, dried peas, etc.) also only count as one
portion per day. (Why? Because you shouldn't overlook
fresh fruits and vegetables which have important beneficial
nutrients not found in beans and pulses.) However, this is not
saying that you shouldn't eat more than one portion of beans and
pulses per day
– you should, as they are generally good for you
–
only that you cannot count them as more than one in your 5 a day.
So what's a portion? About 70-100
grams (net weight after peeling etc.), which typically amounts to:
-
One
large fruit, such as banana, orange, grapefruit (the really big ones
can even be two portions), apple, peach, etc.
-
Two
small fruits, such as mandarins/clementines/satsumas, apricots,
plums, etc.
-
A
generous handful/cupful of berries, cherries, pomegranate seeds,
etc.
-
Four
or more generous tablespoons of peas, corn, lentils, etc.
-
One
large tomato, two medium size ones, or 6-10 cherry
tomatoes
-
5 cm /
2" piece of cucumber
-
'Side
salad portion' of salad leaves, shredded cabbage, etc.
-
Glass
(200 ml / 6-8 oz) of fruit juice
-
Small
handful of dried fruits or nuts
-
Half a
can (200 grams) of baked beans or other tinned beans/pulses
Some
things do not count, for fairly obvious reasons:
-
Jams,
marmalades, etc.: although they are made with fruits, the
sugar content is so high (over 50% in most cases) that they are more
like sweets than fruit as such. Ditto pickles, chutneys,
ketchups, etc.: again, the fruit or vegetable content is so
low, and these are so highly processed, as to have no real
nutritional value left. (NB: These may count towards your
'spectrum' colours intake, though
– eg. ketchup
contains the same lycopenes as fresh tomatoes.)
-
Bread,
potatoes, rice, pasta: these are starchy foods which don't
usually contain much vitamins and other beneficial nutrients found
in fruits and vegetables. They are still good
to eat, though, and if you can eat wholegrain, unprocessed varieties so much
the better
– but they just don't count towards your five a day.
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