We all lead busy lives, and it isn’t always easy to get our recommended 5 to 7 servings of fruits and vegetables in each day. And what constitutes a serving anyway? So I thought I would share with you some ways to get your 5 servings each day, and a little fact finding.
Did you know strawberries have vitamin C, fiber, iron, calcium and protein?
Here is what I did today, 7 servings:
- 8:00 am Breakfast, 1.5 servings: 1/4 cup blueberries and sliced strawberries on top of my cereal and 1/2 cup of orange juice
- 12:00pm Lunch, 2 servings: 1/2 cup sugar snap peas and 1/2 cup baby carrots with my ham sandwich
- 3:00pm Afternoon snack, 1.5 servings: 1/4 cup strawberry and 1 banana smoothie and a handful of almonds (almonds don’t count as a veggie but they are a great nutritional snack packed with iron, calcium, fiber and protein)
- 7:00pm Dinner, 1 serving: Veggie Pasta with peas and leftover ham
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8:00pm Dessert, 1 serving: 1/2 cup blueberries and sliced strawberries served on top of Hagen Daz frozen vanilla yogurt
A Little Fact Finding on the Subject:
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) defines a serving size for fruits or vegetables to be equal to about one 1/2 cup. Greens (i.e. spinach and lettuce) have a serving size equal to 1 cup. A single piece of fruit, such as an apple or a banana counts as one serving. How did the USDA determine what constitutes a serving size? The definition was based on the portion sizes that people typically eat, ease of use and nutritional content of fruits and vegetables.
So there you have it. How did you get your 5 servings today? Send us your comments and share your ideas!
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[…] It also turns out that eating carrots is not the only way to protect your eyesight. Fruits, like watermelon which is also rich in beta-carotene, are just as important. Eating 3 or more servings of fruit per day may lower your risk of age-related macular degeneration (ARMD), the primary cause of vision loss in older adults, by 36%, compared to persons who consume less than 1.5 servings of fruit daily. (Source: Archives of Ophthalmology) Curious how much fruit makes up 1 serving? See my previous post here: Getting your 5 a day […]
[…] It also turns out that eating carrots is not the only way to protect your eyesight. Fruits, like watermelon which is also rich in beta-carotene, are just as important. Eating 3 or more servings of fruit per day may lower your risk of age-related macular degeneration (ARMD), the primary cause of vision loss in older adults, by 36%, compared to persons who consume less than 1.5 servings of fruit daily. (Source: Archives of Ophthalmology) Curious how much fruit makes up 1 serving? See my previous post here: Getting your 5 a day […]