Healthy eating

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Fruit and vegetables: These are a great source of vitamins, minerals, and fibre; such an important part of a balanced diet for children and adults too. Eating plenty of fruit and vegetables helps keep us healthy.

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Information about 5 a day for the whole family

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What counts as 5 a day?

Almost every type of fresh, frozen, tinned and dried fruit and vegetables you can think of counts!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are some examples below:

 

• Unsweetened 100% fruit juice, vegetable juice and smoothies – maximum 150ml, once a day

• Onions, leeks and shallots

• Garlic

• Peas and sweetcorn

• Mushrooms

• Sweet potatoes

• Tinned tomatoes

• Tomato purée – 1 heaped tablespoon is 1 portion

• Baked beans or spaghetti hoops in tomato sauce – choose versions lower in salt and sugar

• Chickpeas, lentils and kidney beans

• Olives – but they can be high in salt

• Tinned fruit and veg, like pineapple or sweetcorn – pick versions in natural juice or water

• Frozen fruit and veg, like berries, peas or spinach

• Dried fruit (30g is 1 portion) – but it sticks to teeth so keep it to mealtimes

• Ready-made salad – go for dressings lower in salt, fat and sugar

• Ready-made soups and sauces – but these can be high in salt, fat and sugar so check the label

 

5 A Day portion sizes

​Portions for adults

 

An adult portion of fresh, frozen or tinned fruit or vegetables is 80g. For dried fruit, a portion is 30g.

 

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Portions for children

​Children should also eat 5 different types of fruit or vegetables each day, but a portion depends on their size and age.

As a rough guide, 1 portion of fruit or veg for a child is the amount they can fit in the palm of their hand.

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​Juice and smoothies

​For unsweetened 100% fruit juice, vegetable juice and smoothies, 150ml is a maximum of 1 portion of your 5 A Day.

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That means juice and smoothies only count once towards your 5 A Day, no matter how much you have or how many different types of fruit or vegetables go into them.

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So stick to 1 small glass (150ml) a day and keep juice or smoothies to mealtimes, as blending makes it higher in sugar, which can cause tooth decay.

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Hi 5!

• A total of 5 portions of fruit and veg combined is the minimum number of servings to aim for.

• You do not need to eat 5 portions of fruit and 5 portions of veg to get your 5 A Day – although the more the better!

 

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Mix and match

• You can also combine smaller amounts of fruit and veg to make up 1 portion.

• For example, a large handful of salad in a sandwich, plus 4 cherry tomatoes and 4 slices of cucumber would count as 1 portion of your 5 A Day.

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For more information please click here to be directed 

 

At Little Leaps Nursery further research has been carried in regards to the different vitamins in all fruit and vegetables. For example:

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Vitamin A is in:

• Sweet pepper

• Peach

• Kale

• Apricot

• Carrots

• Avocado

• Mango

• Sweet Potato

• Broccoli

• Squash

• Spinach

• Papaya

• Tomatoes

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 Vitamin A- Helps support healthy vision, skin, bones and teeth

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Please feel free to speak to a member of staff for more information on this and for all other vitamins too.