Ways to Eat More Fruit for a Healthy Diet & Proper Nutrition
How much fruit do you need?
It can be hard to remember to eat your fruit every day, but by adding them to every meal you can create new and interesting flavors while getting vitamins and nutrients in every bite. So how do you find great fruit and how do you incorporate it? Read on to find out.
Fruits offer vitamins, nutrients, fiber, and complex sugars to your daily diet but how many servings do you need? According to the Center for Disease Control depending on your age, sex, and activity level you should need 2-4 servings a day. As a 23 year old, female, who participates in 60 minutes or more of daily activity it is recommended that I eat two cups of fruit a day.
Finding fresh produce
What’s the best way to find fresh fruits and vegetables. Check online for local farmers markets. They are usually open at least one day a week and you can feel good about your purchases knowing they were grown locally and that the profits from their sale are directly benefiting the farmer. If you can’t make it to a farmers market check out a local Whole Foods. Although some of their specialty items can be pricey most of their produce is comparably priced to that of your local grocery store and its much fresher. If you need to get your produce from a grocery store or superstore try planning ahead and ask the produce manager what day they get in fresh stock. The fresher it is when you buy it the longer it will last and the more likely you are to use it.
How to select fresh fruit
Now that you where to get it you might not know the best way to select fruit or how to get the best deals. Talk with your local produce manager and discuss what fruits and vegetables are in season ask for suggestions on selecting the different types of produce you want. Bananas should be hard and bright yellow but getting some with a tinge of green can be a good way to ensure you have fresh bananas all week. This can be especially helpful if you go to a market only open on certain days.
Fresh vs. Frozen
Frozen fruits can be used when fresh fruits are not available but I would strongly suggest using them only when you have to or when you plan on making fruit smoothies. The trick to getting your family to really enjoy eating their daily servings of fruits is to introduce them to the ripest, tastiest, most delicious fruit possible. I find that frozen fruit is often soggy after being thawed but that the frozen fruits make great smoothies and protein shakes.
Incorporating fruit into all your meals
Once you have the fruits you and your family enjoy its time to be creative. Add them to salads, stir-frys, and as a side dish for dinner. I like to go to Allrecipes.com and type in what kind of meat I have and what kind of fruit I want to use and see what comes up. I had a hard time coming up with a combination that didn’t yield at least one recipe. There are other sources available online so if you don’t find what your looking for at first keep searching.
You can add fruits like strawberries, blueberries, and bananas to cold or hot cereal or yogurt. Try throwing an apple, banana, pear, plum, or orange in your bag for a snack. Like wise a small chopped fruit salad can be a great side dish at lunch or dinner. Don’t forget desert adding fresh berries to ice cream, cheesecake, spongecake, or eating them with Cool-whip make dessert extra sweet while adding nutritional value.
Keep fruit available
Lastly, never underestimate the power of fresh fruits on the table. I have found that just setting a bowl of grapes or melon on the table at dinner encourages my guests to have some either with or right after dinner. Many find that it’s a light alternative to dessert because of the complex sugars of the fruit curb sweet cravings. Be creative and keep looking for new fruits to try.
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