The five-a-day diet plan

To meticulously stick to your body's requirement of five fruit-veggie portions every day, it is important that you know all about the programme. The five-a-day plan - long hailed as the cornerstone of great health - stresses on the health benefits of eating five portions of fruits and vegetables every day. As most fruit and vegetables are low in fat and calories but high in fibre, they help in filling us up without piling on the pounds and keeping our hearts healthy. The fibre they contain keeps our digestive system healthy, preventing problems such as constipation, piles and bowel cancer. For instance, their soluble fibre helps lower cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of heart disease. Fruits and veggies also boost vitamin and mineral intake, including folate for a healthy nervous system and vitamin C for strong immunity and healthy skin and hair. They also provide potassium, which helps lower blood pressure and many antioxidants that help guard against problems such as heart disease, strokes, cancer, dementia, arthritis and even wrinkles. Do fruit juices matter? No matter how much fresh fruit juice you drink in a day, it is counted as only one portion. That is because juices don't contain fibre (unlike a whole piece of fruit) and the juicing squeezes out the natural sugars found between the fruit cells, making them more harmful to teeth. As for juice drinks, they usually contain little juice, lots of sugar and hence don't count for much. Smoothies may count as two portions, but not more. If you're making your own smoothie, it needs to contain two pieces of fruit such as a banana and a pear, or one portion of fruit and a small glass of pure fruit juice. Must fruits and veggies be eaten on their own to count? No. The fruits and veggies you add to dishes such as stir-fries, curries, stews, soups, pizzas, pasta, rice dishes, sauces and desserts all count towards your tally. As for baked beans, kidney beans, chick peas and lentils, they count as only one portion, even if you eat a lot of them. That is because nutritionally they are more similar to meat, poultry, fish and eggs rather than fruits-veggies. What exactly is a portion? A portion of fresh fruits or veggies is 80 grams. The World Health Organisation recommends at least 400 grams of fruits and vegetables daily to prevent obesity, heart disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes. So breaking this 400 into five servings means each serving should be around 80 grams. Shouldn't we eat more than five portions? Studies show our health may benefit even more with greater intakes of fruits-veggies. The World Cancer Research Fund recommends that, in future, we should aim for at least 600g of fruits and veggies daily; equivalent to six portions. Meanwhile, a study published earlier this year in the European Heart Journal found people who ate eight portions of fruits and veggies each day had a 22 per cent lower chance of dying from heart disease than those who ate three portions. For each extra portion added, the risk was lowered by 4 per cent. Should we eat different fruits and veggies? To get the most health benefits, it's best to vary your choices as different fruits and veggies contain different combinations of fibre, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Aim to eat five differently-coloured fruits and veggies each day. How can we get kids to eat five-a-day? Don't be tempted to hide fruits and veggies in dishes as it would only keep them away. Children need to learn that fruits and veggies are tasty as well as beneficial for them, so get them involved in helping prepare meals and snacks that contain fruits and veggies. Other ways to five-a-day Add raisins to cereal. Make shakes and smoothies with fresh berries and bananas. Top pizzas with sweet corn, peppers and tomatoes. Make fruit skewers with chunks of pineapple, mango and melon. Serve meals with baked beans or corn on the cob. Mash potatoes with an equal amount of carrot.