Do you eat five portions of fruit/veg a day?

[Darkling1]

I plan my meals around what fruit/veg we have at home, so I consume my five fruit and veg most days!

I remember that target feeling impossible as a child, but I find it much easier as an adult.

Yes and it's the single biggest thing that makes a difference to my physical well-being. During weeks/months where I manage to eat at least 5 every single day, I have virtually zero headaches, body aches, tiredness and it improves hormonal and MH symptoms as well. During phases where I don't eat enough fresh fruit & veg, I sometimes need painkillers every day just to get through the basic tasks.

It's a pain though because your entire day is spent planning meals around healthy ingredients, food shopping and meal preparation. Fresh convenience foods are ok but very pricey in the long run.

Unpopular opinion but I believe a lot of people who are chronically ill with non-specified symptoms (long covid, POTS, fibromyalgia, MCAS, chronic fatigue, IBS, SIBO) may have terrible diets that exacerbate the symptoms and eventually lead to a situation where they cannot stomach fresh fruit & veg which only makes the cycle worse.

No too expensive

Why do people use the word “doing” for food these days instead of “eating”? I’ve noticed this a lot on Facebook too, and it seems very strange to me.

Just to say this wouldn’t count as 5, as it’s 5 different types of fruit and veg. It’s all about variety. Ultimately the ideal is that we’d eat 7-12 portions but because the average consumption is well below this, ‘a minimum of 5 portions’ is the advice for the public because it’s achievable. Also, it’s recommended eating more veg than fruit due to the natural sugar content in fruit. I used to have snacks at work my colleagues called my rabbit food, with tomatoes, grapes, sugarsnaps (raw), carrot and celery but I’d then change it up. Variety is key :-)

I have one of those illnesses you mention and as stated below I have 20+ fruit and veg a day.

Happy to reconsider if you point me to some
scientific research.

Not even close. Combination of being a very fussy eater, and a lazy cook.

Not always but then on here you see the Competition Level 5 a Day eaters where some inhale 4 punnets of soft fruit and an acre of Chard just for a snack. Today for instance I've had a banana, some salad at lunchtime and will have 2 veg with tea later
. I may squeeze in a handful of strawberries for pudding but might not.

Trying to keep up, and looking for ideas.

Today I have eaten some hummus - chickpeas - do they count? Tonight I'll have a pasta and tomato Sause, so onions and tinned tomato. Oh and some grapes for pudding. 4. That's rubbish isn't it. Maybe I will make a side salad.

I think that it feels natural when it's related to quantity consumed. Similar to "I'm doing 3 pills a night" or "I'm doing a bag of coke a week"

Seems to me that F+V provide fibre, Vit C and traces of other minerals. Easier to get that from a Vit C tablet and flax/chia seed on porridge or yogurt.

But some like to eat F+V too. Not me as I can't stand veg, but do eat fruit at breakfast only. That's it, and I'm fine so far at 68 with no deficiencies.

Buying F+V is very expensive now also.

As you can see I don't follow rules made by someone who thinks they are right all the time. These rule makers should also indicate alternatives to the nutritional values in F+V for those who won't, don't or cannot eat them!

I do and it became a lot easier when I cut down the amount of meat and processed food I was eating. I’m not convinced that DH ever does.

I have a bowl of mixed fruit per day.. melon/ pineapple/strawberries/raspberries/ grapes.. usually.
Then include a veg or some salad with my tea.
I think l do okay.

I aim for 30 different plants a week (includes more than just fruit and veg - seeds, nuts, pulses etc) and usually manage quite a lot more.

What did you have with the Hummus? I find prepping in advance makes me more prone to eat more to be honest, so I sometimes prep a load of veg sticks in advance and put them in a tupperware in the fridge. It makes me less likely to grab a twix and get some veg sticks instead.

No problem. I have had 3 at breakfast.

Same here. I had a portion of watermelon, raisins and pomegranate seeds with my shredded wheat and yoghurt.

I wat a lot of vegetables but don’t eat any fruit unless its been cooked or baked or whizzed up in a smoothie, which is not that often.

@User2454664 ‘Unpopular opinion but I believe a lot of people who are chronically ill with non-specified symptoms (long covid, POTS, fibromyalgia, MCAS, chronic fatigue, IBS, SIBO) may have terrible diets that exacerbate the symptoms and eventually lead to a situation where they cannot stomach fresh fruit & veg which only makes the cycle worse.‘

Some perhaps, but as there is no cure for these sort of illnesses (which have very clear symptoms in most cases), a lot of people including myself eat extremely healthy in the hope of not making our situation any worse and hopefully improve our lot.

I easily eat into double numbers of veg, salad veg and fruit a day and have well over 35 different varieties a week (including grains, nuts etc). I certainly eat the rainbow and eat very clean with minimal ultra processed foods.

stayathomer Thought raw green beans may be toxic? they contain Lectins which can cause digestive problems /Tummy ache .diarrohea .States online best to cook first. esp if giving to children

In recovery from Chemo . 5 portions a day here! Feel a little inadequate now ,with tales of 9 or 10 though

Lots of veg is really cheap.

I don’t count portions any more but have around 15 types of fruit and veg each day, I’m really into it!

Hm, I'm trying...not sure if I make it to the actual amount of a "portion".
Today, I've had

• lettuce
• carrot
• tomato
• plum
• nectarine
• strawberries

For dinner, this will probably also include

• cucumbers
• water melon
• courgette

I do find it easier in the summer. I'm also currently trying to cut out too much snacking of unhealthy stuff, hence an increased amount of fruit to begin with. I did snack on carrots but I think I've had too many of them...😂🤦‍♀️
I've now bought a water melon and have portioned that into different containers. I'll try and snack on those instead.

Yes, this time of year it's very easy. But I always have overnight oats with fruit for breakfast on workdays, always have some fruit with whatever I'm eating for lunch, ( which will normally include some kind of veg) always have some kind of salad with my dinner if I'm not cooking veg.
In winter, I often have a vegetable soup on the go for snackers to help themselves to, or so that whoever is home at lunchtime has instant healthy lunch available.
I also eat nuts and oily fish quite regularly, I should be really healthy, not 4 stone overweight!

But you a) need to also be able to afford the pots and pans and gas/electricity to cook them and b) have the skill set to do that. That's the real difficulty, not how cheaply you can buy root vegetables and apples and bananas. And if you want a big variety you inevitable start buying more expensive options.