Do you get '5 a day'?

[Gobbledigook]

Recently done a project on this - just wonder how many of us ensure our children (or ourselves even) get 5 portions of different fruit/veg per day?

Here's a link about the health benefits

5aday

[Hulababy]

I know that I don't - I get about 3 a day, sometimes 4. DH averages about 4. I do try harder with DD and most days she does manage at least 5 fruit and veg a day

[Gobbledigook]

Yeah, it's hard isn't it but I think my kids do better than I do!!!

They generally do get 5 a day because they are very good with fruit so they'll eat apples, bananas, raisins, strawberries, pears, peaches. And at dinner they'll get veg with each meal or pasta will have tomatoes in, sometimes spinach. I'm really conscious about doing it for them but I drag behind probably managing about 3

[Lonelymum]

I try for 5, usually manage min 3/4.
Ds1 usually has min 3, maybe more - he is aware of the 5-a-day idea but doesn't always achieve it.
The other children and dh would be lucky to get 2.

[Yorkiegirl]

Message withdrawn

[JoolsToo]

don't forget pure orange juice and the like contribute to a portion.

On (usually) 5/7 days I'd say I have 3 of fruit and I tend to eat a lot of salad veg (this is a quite new thing for me - I used to hate salad) including spinach, pepper and red cabbage - all raw - so I consider I'm not doing too badly [smug]

[honeybunny]

Both kiddies get 5aday, I'm more like 6-8/day but I'm addicted to fruit at the moment... pg cravings strike again. dh only bothers if I prepare it all for him in the fruit line and hospital food aint up to much, so I suppose he's more like 3-4.

[carla]

My daily orange juice and/or peas/salad with supper are all I have. How on earth can a 5 or 6 year old expect to down 5 loads of fruit each day? Mine wouldn't have room for anything else! Is there somewhere you could look up the proportions for children of that age?

[MrsTwit]

We all get at least 5-a-day every day, usually 5 different ones, and adults generally more than 5-a-day ... I guess that's what WW "free veg" does for you!

[Lonelymum]

Carla I have a leaflet about getting fussy children to eat better, and in that it does say that you should try to give them 2 portions of f/v. I always feel I have done sufficiently well to get ds2 to eat two portions, though my other children, I would try to get them to eat more.
Also, I always assume that what is a portion for an adult would be maybe 2 for a child, so I count half an apple as one portion for my 4 yo.

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

I read somewhere that you can count a portion of beans eg baked beans as one of the 5.

I think we crack it most days.

I drink a lot of veg juice using my juicer so I hope that takes me up to/over the 5.

[Jennisaurus]

I definately get my 5 a day, but I suspect DD does not

[KatieMac]

To judge portion size.....

the amount of fruit or veg that will cover the palm of your hand.

So for a baby - tiny and for my DH - enormous

[lavender2]

the last 2 weeks they have, fruit for snack, greens and pots for tea and orange juice in the morning...fraid become aneamic without me greens

[Hulababy]

Yep, baked beans (still veg in there even if covered in sauce, etc.) and a glass of orange juice both count as one portion each. DD loves smoothies so she will often get a portion that way too.

[Hulababy]

On this site you can get charts for kids to fill in and activity sheets - all aimed at eating mroe fruit and veg.


Also about servings:

What is a serving?

1 medium-size fruit
3/4 cup (6 oz.) of 100 percent fruit or vegetable juice
1/2 cup fresh, frozen, or canned fruit (in 100 percent juice) or vegetables
1 cup of raw leafy greens
1/2 cup peas or beans ? cooked dry, frozen, or canned
1/4 cup dried fruit

Which is more nutritious ? fresh, frozen, canned, or dried fruits and vegetables?

All of these fruit and vegetable sources are nutritious and each offers an option for busy lifestyles. Some points to remember:

Take care of fresh fruits and vegetables to preserve their flavor and nutrients. Refrigerate as soon as possible after purchase and handle gently to avoid bruising. Store cans and packages of dried fruit in a cool, dry place. Choose fruit that is canned in 100% juice.

Does juice count toward my 5 A Day?

Yes, 100% juice counts, and is a good way to get one of your 5 A Day servings. There are a lot of juice impersonators in the marketplace so always read labels to make sure you?re getting 100% juice. For those watching their weight, keep in mind that juice is not a substitute for water. Juice as your only beverage throughout the day is an easy way to wind up drinking too many calories.

[sweetkitty]

I usually get between 3 and 4 sometimes 5, DD still on breast milk only but surely the portion sizes for adults isn't the same for babies/young children?

DP has only started eating fruit an apple and banana a day! I try and sneak it in to his dinner when he's not looking he hates anything green (good practice for children I reckon). He's terrible though he had one cold in all the years I've known him!

[WigWamBam]

I get at least 5 a day as I'm a total fruit addict. I've never had any problem with my 3.5yo dd either, who likes fruit and loves veg even more - at the moment she'd rather have a mushroom or a sprout than sweets, so I'm lucky in that respect. Dh, on the other hand, doesn't even seem to know what fruit is.

[prufrock]

Potatoes don't count as a vegetable for the 5 a day.
I and dd usually do. 1 of juice each (heavily diluted with water throughout the day) Usually fruit for mid-morning snack, one veg at lunch and 2 with dinner, usually one in a sauce and a veg on the side.
Ds only has 3 solid meals a day - but I suppose at 6 months it's a bit early

[biketastic]

yep, all 3 of us get 5 a day. the adults balance that with biscuits too, however
DS is crazy about bannana and yells "nan nan nan" the second he thinks he might possibly have seen one, or if anyone mentions them in passing. Very funny, if not a bit manic on his behalf sometimes. He will eat sweetcorn and peas one by one which is also funny.
He also has been known to try to eat recylced sweetcorn if he sees it in his nappy-mmm, ?tmi???

[WideWebWitch]

I reckon we mostly have at least 5 a day too, made up of fruit juice, 2 apples, a banana, 2 vegetables at least with supper. Ds would usually have had 3/4 pieces of fruit by lunchtime.