Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month!

To help get in the spirit of Fresh Fruit and Veggie month here’s a riddle….

Why did the mushroom get invited to all the parties?  (scroll down to see the answer!)

Fruits & Vegetables are Important because….

  1. Contain many of the nutrients our body needs to develop, rebuild, and stay strong.
  2. Reduce the risk of chronic diseases (heart attack, heart disease, stroke, cancer, the list goes on…  🙂
  3. Low in fat, sugar, and calories!  Eating Fruit/Veggies instead of processed and high caloric foods will help you achieve and KEEP a healthy weight.

The dietary guidelines are recommendations of how much and what kind of food individuals should be eating on a daily basis.  These guidelines are set by the U.S Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Recommended Amount (per day):
4-5 servings of Fruit
4-5 servings of Vegetables

So, you may be concerned that’s a lot of food, but a serving is a lot less than you think!

What is a serving?

VEGETABLES:
1 cup raw leafy vegetables [about the size of a small fist]
1/2 cup raw or cooked of any other vegetable
1/2 cup (8 fluid ounces) fruit juice

FRUIT:

1 medium fruit (size of a baseball)
1/2 cup chopped or cooked or canned fruit
1/2 (8 fluid ounces) cup juice

 

portionsize

Buying fruits and vegetables can be expensive!  Here are tips for saving money when eating healthy!

STEP 1: PLANNING

  • Make a list to avoid spending money on unnecessary items.
  • Buy Frozen, Canned, Dried, and Fresh Forms of Fruits and Vegetables on your list. They are all nutritious and great for your body!

STEP 2: SHOPPING

  • Buy In Season. Those in season are typically less expensive.  What’s in Season?
  • Canned/Frozen/Fresh are all good great Fruit and vegetable varieties.
  • Buy More. When there are specials on fruits and vegetables, buy extra. Freeze anything you won’t use right away.  Don’t Buy It If You Won’t Use It!
  • Don’t Shop When you’re Hungry. You will spend more $!
  • Shop for Sales: The larger size is not always the best price!
  • Limit Or Avoid Expensive Snack Foods, Desserts and Soft Drinks that provide little or no nutrition value for your money.
  • If you don’t have unhealthy foods in your house, you can’t eat them!

 

Buying Juice

When buying ANY juice. Always remember:

1. Must be 100% juice in order to be made completely from the fruit/vegetable

2. 100% of a nutrient DOES NOT mean it is 100% juice. Such as “provides 100% Daily Value for vitamin C” it must also say     100% juice to be from the plant!
3. Any “juice” that is not 100% juice is considered a sweetened beverage (soda,energy drinks)
Concentrate vs. Not from Concentrate:

Capture

Riddle answer:  Because he was a fun-gi to be with! HA HA

Save $ by properly storing your fruits and vegetables.  They will stay fresher-longer meaning you will save money!

Click to find out how->How to Store Fruits and Vegetables 

 

 

Vitamins Cheat Sheet

 Typical meals can be made much healthier with just a few extra additions(Fruits and Veggies)!  Check out Fruits and Veggies More Matters for easy to read recipes reinvented to increase the amount of nutrients you are eating!