Hands up if you eat the 5 daily servings of fruits and veggies as recommended by the USDA or the 7-10 daily servings recommended by Canada’s Food Guide.
I’m not seeing many hands!
But the truth is, folks, there’s a reason why the government wants us to get in all those leafy greens and juicy fruits. A diet rich in fruits and veggies protects us against obesity, diabetes, cancer, and a slew of conditions and diseases. Vegetables and fruits lower blood pressure and decrease bone loss. They give us essential vitamins and nutrients that we can’t get anywhere else.
We all know this, but according to a study I came across recently that was conducted by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 89% of Americans aren’t eating enough fruits and vegetables. Using that statistic, only 11% of you have your hands up right now.
That study also concluded that 25% of people don’t eat any vegetables ever and 62% of people don’t eat fruit. Ever. EVER.
Now, I know it’s hard to get 5 servings of the good stuff in every single day, but here are some tips to help you get the most bang for your veggie bucks.
• Whenever you can, buy vegetables and fruits that are grown locally.
• Have frozen veggies on hand and eat them towards the end of the week when your fresh stash has been depleted.
• Every week when you’re at the supermarket or farmers’ market, pick up a new fruit or vegetable to try that week. You might stumble upon a new favorite!
• Buy veggies like sweet potatoes, spinach, beet greens, and lima beans frequently because of their high levels of potassium.
• Add a great big salad to your dinner every single evening.
• Puree your leftover cooked vegetables and save them for thickening soups and stews.
• Grate carrots, zucchini, and sweet potatoes into meatloaf.
• Add a smoothie to your daily diet and that should take care of your fruit intake. Toss in some kale or spinach and voila! You’ve managed to get in some veggies, too!
Seriously! Eat them up. Here’s something that will help you double down and get tons of veggies in–fast and easy: our Just Juice Veggies. I use Just Juiced Veggies in EVERYTHING from smoothies to soups, stews, and salads–
I really don’t find it hard. Right now I am eating pastured eggs scrambled with lots of bell pepper. I stirred in some baby arugula at the end so it would still essentially be raw. Also eating a big raw carrot (have heard that eating a raw carrot every day, preferably with skin on, helps to balance hormones). Four lunch I’ll have more of the arugula, topped with chopped carrot and peppers, and a can of sardines. Dinner will be a tiny bit of grass fed steak with spinach. I will repeat the same veggies over a few days until they are used up, then buy some different ones. Oh, for fruit I had about half of an organic apple that I cut up for my daughter. Really not hard to get them in if you have them on hand. And I am trying to get better about packing veggies and fruit for day and weekend trips by car.