Five a day. Do we have to have so much fruit and veg?

[Accy cyclist]

I try but find it difficult to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Yesterday i managed just one. I had a banana and not being a fruit fan,it took some effort to eat it. My question is, am i being unhealthy in not having my 5 a day if i eat very little else and that very little else consists mainly of food regarded as being moderately healthy? I could understand if i ate say a fry up,a cheese burger,a whole chocolate cake and other such things in a day,but if i'm eating like i did yesterday,which was two eggs on wholemeal toasted bread,a cheese sandwich(wholemeal bread) a bowl of muesli,three profiteroles in chocolate sauce and a handful of mixed nuts and that one piece of fruit,then by eating not that much,does it matter if i don't have 5 a day? I try and eat a banana,a tangerine and a portion of green beans or broccoli in a day. I aim for 3 a day,but some days i manage just 1 or 2.

 

[PaulSB]

I'm not a great fruit fan either and getting five a day in vegetables is not easy.

We consider our diet to be healthy and don't concern ourselves with five a day at all. I recently had my annual health check up, all my results came back 100% as they should be and the practice nurse described me as "fit as a butcher's dig."

Exercise regularly and eat sensibly and you'll be fine - not sure about all those profiteroles though!!

The only tip I can offer is at breakfast. I always have oats soaked in milk with sultanas and frozen berries. I grow my own black and red currants and easily get a year's supply but in season these are cheap in the market. Buy all you can, freeze and then have a handful in your muesli etc. each morning.

 

[Drago]

I don't eat nearly enough veg, and I'm a towering hunk of broad chested granite hard muscle.

 

[mustang1]

I thought the latest findings were 7 fruit/veg per day. The only reason they don't say that is because no one's eating 5 yet so they don't want to push the public over the edge.

 

[mustang1]

Actually, a little side track: they dont tell us we shouldn't sit at our desks for 12 hours a day. The most they come up with is take a walk every hour (but carry on working).

 

[Levo-Lon]

Yes please..ive just had a dozen fresh grapes with my sugar free musili.
Salad with chicken for lunch, and veg or a side salad for tea, whats not to like?

 

[Drago]

Do fruit pastilles count?

 

[winjim]

Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.

 

[ianrauk]

I do try to eat 5 a day. Banana with brekkie. An apple and orange with my lunch at work. Veggies in the evening. I dont think that it's overly beneficial having 5 a day but it's better then not. However I do know people who don't eat any fruit and veg and are as healthy as me.

 

[Accy cyclist]

We consider our diet to be healthy and don't concern ourselves with five a day at all. I recently had my annual health check up, all my results came back 100% as they should be and the practice nurse described me as "fit as a butcher's dig.

However I do know people who don't eat any fruit and veg and are as healthy as me.

But do you know that for certain? Not wanting to sound like the grim reaper,but being declared fit and healthy doesn't guarantee against poor health in years to come. Having said that,i was a fan of all things green years ago. Green tea,savoy cabbage(like chewing wood)spinach,green beans,mushy peas(still a healthy veg',it's the pie you tend to have with them that's not too good). Then i ended up with cancer. That put an end to my green obsession,as i thought eating green was a protector against the disease,but obviously it isn't.

Edit...and the "super fit" fellow across from where i used to live ate a bulb of garlic a day,ate molasses daily,ate all his advised fruit and veg',ran 5 miles a day,never smoked,drank only a couple of pints of weak beer a day,then suffered a crippling stroke.

 

[Accy cyclist]

Do fruit pastilles count?

As long as you don't over cook them.

 

[Dirk]

I don't eat nearly enough veg, and I'm a towering hunk of broad chested granite hard muscle.

On the outside........

 

[PaulSB]

But do you know that for certain? Not wanting to sound like the grim reaper,but being declared fit and healthy doesn't guarantee against poor health in years to come.

Absolutely. I'm in 100% agreement with you which is why my wife and I have both retired at 60 and 62 and we live every day as though tomorrow won't come. I'm talking about enjoying life, not partying till dawn!

I had a heart attack out of the blue two years ago. I could probably have prevented that by not smoking earlier in life.

Equally I now know the warning signs were there for perhaps 15 years or more. I didn't ignore them but did nothing because I didn't recognise them. The cardiac rehab nurses told me this is a common problem and especially so in women as it's harder to spot for them.

Most men know difficulty peeing in later life means a trip to the GP but there is very little practical advice on heart attack symptoms or warnings. I only went to A&E because I didn't feel "right" not because I thought I'd had a heart attack. The attack I suffered would have been easy to dismiss as one of those things.

 

[Accy cyclist]

[QUOTE 4970334, member: 9609"]as they say the proof is in the pudding - how is your health Accy ?


I'm lucky in that I just love fruit, always have, I could easily have 20+ portions a day.
I will make a list today - i'm up to a nectarine and an apple already and still haven't had my breakfast.[/QUOTE]
My physical health is ok,touchwood. I always say touchwood,or if like someone said yesterday "You must be very fit to cycle and walk all those miles",i reply with maybe,but i don't take it for granted.

 

[Accy cyclist]

I've just had a teacake/muffin,or whatever they're called in your area,with some strawberry jam on. I actually got what felt like a whole strawberry in my dollop of jam. Does that count as one of my 5 a day?