- Create your own yogurt flavors with plain yogurt and different combinations of fruit.
- Snack on raw vegetables or fruits instead of chips or pretzels. Keep sugar snap peas, raisins or carrot sticks in your car, your office or your backpack.
- Use chunky salsa instead of thick, creamy snack dips.
- Drink 100% juice instead of addictive coffee, tea, or soda.
- Going out to lunch? Take a trip to the grocery salad bar. Use lots of dark green leaves and other vegetables instead of piling on all of the extras like eggs, bacon, or croutons.
- Add frozen veggies to any pasta dish.
- Keep fruits and vegetables in line of sight. Grapes, oranges, bananas, and apples make a colorful bowl arrangement on the table. If you see them, you will eat them.
- Dried fruit is just as portable as potato chips -- and less messy. Plus, it's an easy way to increase your iron consumption.
- When cooking vegetables, makes 2-3 times more than you need and immediately store the extra away for tomorrow. It will save you time later on when you might not feel up to the task of cooking.
- Dried fruit tastes especially good when added to a basic trail mix.
- Add your own beans and vegetables (tomatoes, spinach, peppers, cabbage) to canned and quick-serve soups. The beans will add protein while the veggies will pack in some extra vitamins.
- If you must have pizza, load on extra veggies and pineapple.
- Try berries, melons or dates for a naturally sweet dessert rather than the usual candy bar, cookie, or ice cream sandwich.
- Frozen fruit and veggies are nearly as healthy as the fresh stuff, and only take minutes to prepare.
- Combine fruit with your main meal courses. Raisins, apples and tangerine slices add sweet, crunchy variety to a salad. Apples complement pork and orange slices are perfect with chicken.
Besides being packed full of nutrients, fruits and vegetables can also be quite filling. They may even ward off your empty calorie snacking! Don't be discouraged by the 5 servings a day recommendation. The guide below shows that one serving is less than what you might think.
One serving equals:
1 medium piece of fruit
½ cup fruit or vegetables (raw, cooked, canned, or frozen)
1 cup of leafy salad greens
¼ cup of dried fruit
¾ cup or 6 oz. of 100% juice
½ cup cooked peas or beans (from canned or dried)
Tricks for Healthy Treats
