How To Increase Your Daily Fruit And Vegetable Consumption

In order to get all the benefits, fruit and vegetables don't need to be fresh, or even eaten on their own. They can be part of a dish, or placed in juices and smoothies, but they have to be prepared without adding too much fats or sugars. Together with fresh goodies, you can also count those in soups or stews. Some things like beans count as only one portion regardless of how much of it you eat because they don't offer all the nutrients you need. While the amount of fibre you get from beans is amazingly high, you'll need other vitamins and minerals. Frozen, canned and dried fruits and veggies also count. Regarding the canned fruit and vegetables, the best option would be to choose those tinned in water or in their natural juice. Dried fruits and vegetables are also good for you. Thirty grams or a handful of dried fruit counts as one daily portion.

How To Reach The Minimum

Making a smoothie is a great way to feed yourself all the wonderfulness if you find 5-a-day rule hard to obtain. There are thousands of different smoothies you can make in the comfort of your own home, and the only thing you'll need is a blender or a food processor. Even though green smoothies can be great for you, you have to be careful and consume no more than two per day, since crushing fruits and veggies into a smoothie means lot more sugars, hence more danger for teeth. Be creative — choose among carrots, apples, spinach, strawberries, bananas, kale... anything really. Mix and match and learn which ones you like the most.

READ How to Clean Your Fruits and Veggies

Another good way to add up numbers is to snack on vegetables. Whenever you feel like snacking something, grab a carrot. The crunchy veggie is full of vitamin E and beta-carotene. Bake kale in the oven and you'll have crunchy kale chips to munch with your movie. You can do this with sweet potatoes too, just slice them, drizzle with dash of olive oil and salt and bake for 15 minutes.

READ How To Sneak Veggies Into Your Diet

Cheats: Surprising Ways To Eat All Five (And More)

Besides smoothies and fruit juice, there are several unusual things that counts in five-a-day daily serving and some that don't.

• Good way to add up a portion is by eating popcorn. Even though corn is not a fruit or veggie, but a grain, it is amazing for our bodies, just don't overdo it with toppings. Studies have found that a single serving of popcorn contains 300 mg of antioxidants.

• Slices of lemon in your drink or lemon sprinkled over salads count too.

• Hummus spread on whole-grained toast is a way to add a serving, since it's made of chickpeas, olive oil and garlic.

• Guacamole dip is made of avocados and hence the easy and tasty way to add up a portion. Grab some whole-wheat crackers and dig in.

• Just one tablespoon of tomato purée counts as a daily portion of vegetables. Make sure to read the ingredients and find the healthiest option.

• Raisins can replace regular grapes, but not too often because of the added sugars.

• Tinned sauces are claimed to have certain health benefits, but make sure you don't consume them too much since they often contain added salt and sugar. Some manufacturers claim that their products count as daily portions, but it would be for the best if your portions came from whole foods.