Alternative ways to get your 7 fruit and veg a day

New guidelines say that we should all be eating seven portions of fruit and veg per day. The study says increasing your intake of fruit and vegetables from five a day to seven can increase your health and life expectancy.

A study into over 65,000 people found that those eating seven portions of fruit and vegetables had less risk of dying from cancer and heart disease. According to the BBC, fresh vegetables had the strongest benefit, followed by salad, and then fruit.

But if you’re already struggling to hit your five a day quota, how can you squeeze in some extra veggies?

12 alternative foods that count towards your 7 a day

1. Baked beans – Fear not students because your staple meal of beans on toast actually counts.

2. Chilli con carne – Fill it with kidney beans, red peppers, mushrooms, sweetcorn and onions for a massive veggie bonanza.

3. Hummus – Spread this dip made from ground-up chickpeas on toast or across a rice cake for a healthy snack.

4. Glass of juice – If you avoid the sugary ‘from concentrate’ varieties and juice your own then this can be a great way to give kids a fruit injection.

5. Two handfuls of olives – Chop them over your pizza (homemade and not from Dominos) or eat them as a snack between meals.

6. Tinned spaghetti – Who knew those little loops were so good for you?

7. One spoon of tomato purée – Squeeze a dollop into your homemade pasta sauce with a can of chopped tomatoes, plenty of fresh herbs, a couple of anchovies and mushrooms.

8. Guacamole – Avocados provide the ‘good fats’ our bodies need to be healthy. Try dipping carrot sticks or red pepper slices into it for a great snack.

9. Sweet Potato – Roast them to make tasty chips.

10. Mini packet of raisins – Not just for children’s lunch boxes.

11. Half a chopped onion – Pretty much a staple of curries, so now you have an excuse for that Saturday night takeaway.

12. Covent Garden Soup Co – These supermarket soups contain so much goodness they can often provide more than one of your five-a-day.

And, no matter how hard you try to convince yourself, these DO NOT count: baked potatoes, jam, ketchup, blueberry muffins, apple pie.

 

Credit: handbag.com.