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Friday, February 17, 2012

Consume The Right Amount Of Fruit Each Day

The proper amount of daily fruit in our diets is essential, yet I've polled many people asking if they consume the daily recommended servings for their age. Sadly most polled adults don't even eat half of what they should.

I personally love fruits of all shapes, sizes and varieties! I want variety and to be more creative than just grabbing a piece of fruit from the fridge and biting into it! I believe the key to eating the right amount of fruits daily is to be strategic and creative. Think outside the box!

Ways to incorporate fruit into your diet and avoid boredom:

- On top of cereal ~ add one fruit or a combo of blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, bananas or use apricots, prunes or dates in plain hot oatmeal cereal
- In a smoothie ~ be creative, experiment with flavours by mixing different fruits; I incorporate vegetables too (but not too much) to get the vitamins and nutrients without overpowering the taste
- Add to plain yogurt ~ try a variety of fruits, like berries, apples, melon, mango, bananas, etc and for variety you can mix in granola for crunch
- Mix into cottage cheese ~ very ripe peaches are my all time favourite mix, but berries are good too
- On top of salads ~ use mangoes, mandarin oranges, apples, kiwi or pineapple
- Add to your entrees ~ use in stir fry with chicken or pork
- In desserts ~ I tend to avoid too many baked goods which usually call for added sugars but sometimes will pair a bowl of fruit with a touch of light table cream, there's so many recipe options for fruity desserts

Rules for Consuming Fruits

1. Eat fruit over drinking fruit juices as juices tend to be higher in sugar with less fibre
2. Choose proper portions, if you don't know the right amount for your age group, the refer to the Canada's Food Guide
3. Don't limit your choices, eat a wide variety of fruits - cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelon, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, grapefruit, apricots, peaches, pears, oranges, plums, and mangos are among the lowest in natural sugars
4. Even Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetics need to incorporate fruit in their diets, refer to the Diabetes Canada Handy Portion Guide for proper portion amounts

Canada's Food Guide Recommended Daily Servings

Benefits of Consuming Fruits

To replenish the vitamins, minerals, nutrients and fibre that our bodies need. Some have antioxidant properties. While others are good for pain and inflammation. They supply us with positive energy. And help our bodies ward off illness. The list of benefits go on.

Kids and Fruits

For kids it can be even more challenging! I recommend being creative and have fun with the presentation of foods to engage the kids. In many cases you can make it a learning experience too.

When I worked in Early Childhood Education, I enjoyed the Very Hungry Caterpillar story book and so did the kids! I found this cute Hungry Fruit Caterpillar Snack that's very easy to make and can be made with various fruits to suit kids tastes.