Five a day program uk

Despite being officially adopted by the UK government in , people are still eating an average of only three and a half portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Prof Tim Lang says the message has lost its way: "They've lost their health education, radical cultural change emphasis.

Almost all fruit and vegetables count as part of your 'five-a-day' and they don't always have to be fresh. An exception that surprised me is potatoes.

Tom Sanders, professor of nutrition at King's College London says that is a little unfair. The five-a-day message has always been tied to health benefits, specifically that eating more fruit and vegetables reduces your risk of heart disease and cancer. Studies over decades of people's diet and health have thrown new light on the associated health benefits. He says: "What's turned out in the last dozen years or so is that, although some of these hypotheses have been confirmed, many of them have fallen over.

Prof Sanders agrees that fruit and vegetables are not "super foods" that protect against cancer but - like many nutritionists - takes the view that it is better to fill up your plate with vegetables than a lot of the other high-calorie food it's so easy to snack on.

In this video, a dietitian gives advice on exactly how much is 1 portion of fruit or vegetables. Fruit and vegetables don't have to be fresh to count as a portion.

Nor do they have to be eaten on their own: they also count if they're part of a meal or dish. Some ready-made foods are high in salt , sugar and fat , so only have them occasionally or in small amounts. In the UK, we get a lot of our vitamin C from potatoes. Although they typically only contain around 11 to 16mg of vitamin C per g of potatoes, we generally eat a lot of them.

When eaten as part of a meal, potatoes are generally used in place of other sources of starch, such as bread, pasta or rice. Red meat and the risk of bowel cancer What is a Mediterranean diet? How to prepare and cook food safely How to store food and leftovers 10 ways to prevent food poisoning Why you should never wash raw chicken Cooking turkey How to wash fruit and vegetables The truth about sweeteners Sprouted seeds safety advice.

Healthy recipes Healthy breakfasts Surprising calorie snacks. Common digestive problems and how to treat them Good foods to help your digestion 5 lifestyle tips for a healthy tummy Beat the bloat Should you cut out bread to stop bloating? They're an excellent source of dietary fibre , which can help to maintain a healthy gut and prevent constipation and other digestion problems.

A diet high in fibre can also reduce your risk of bowel cancer. They can help to reduce your risk of heart disease , stroke and some types of cancer.

In an attempt to reinforce the importance of unprocessed, nutrient-rich foods - the 5 a day campaign was officially backed by the UK Government in The campaign advised that eating 5 portions of fruit and veg in total every day would help protect against common health problems like heart disease. So why exactly is fruit and veg so important? Here are some key nutritional benefits:. Because different fruit and veg have different nutritional benefits, try to enjoy a variety of types to get the most from your 5 a day.

On top of the health benefits, making your diet more plant-based is great for the planet. Upping your vegetable intake and reducing your meat intake decreases the amount of water and land needed for food production whilst decreasing greenhouse gas emissions.

Read up on the flexitarian approach and the planetary diet to learn more. A common question for those trying to fit 5 portions of fruit and veg in their diet is: what counts towards the 5 a day guide? The answer is, almost all fruits and vegetables. As well as fresh varieties, the following also count towards your recommended daily amount:. This question has been hotly debated. The reason juice has been debated as part of your 5 a day is due to the high levels of sugars that are released when the fruit is juiced.

Because of this, when it comes to fruit juices and smoothies it's recommended that you enjoy those with no added sugar and not to rely on these as your main source of fruit and veg. The sugars and acids within fruit juice can also be harmful to your dental health, so it may be worth diluting juices in water to help neutralise them.