Are You Living in Antiquity When It Comes to the Recommended Daily Serving of Fruits and Vegetables?

Usually I don't pay very much attention to the signs and what nots in the store when I go grocery shopping. Quite often I have a shopping list and an agenda not to go down the middle isles. However for some reason I decided to read the colorful displays in the fresh produce section regarding the recommended amount of daily servings for fruits and vegetables. To my horror it read "Eat 5 A Day". And they're not the only ones still living in antiquity when it comes to how much fruits and vegetables one should eat daily. When I have conversations with people regarding healthy eating I constantly get gasps when I tell them what the true, updated amount really is. So what is it you ask...

Well it is now recommended that adults eat between 9-13 servings of fruits and vegetables every day; and prior to that the recommendation was 7 servings. Whoa Nelly that is a lot now isn't it!

Now don't worry, you can get as close to that number as possible. Here are a few things I recommend incorporating into your daily routine.

Smoothie It Up! The hardest meal to eat for most people is breakfast. Usually this is because no one has the time to cook the meal and get to work at a reasonable hour. This is the perfect opportunity to get at least 2 to 3 servings of fruits in for the day if you make a fruit smoothie. A smoothie is quick and requires no cooking, just toss some stuff in the blender and go. Now if you're doing this for breakfast I recommend putting some protein in there to ward of insulin resistance (better known as syndrome X) and fight that mid morning hunger pang.

Don't Buy those Snacks. With the economy the way it is more and more people are brown bagging it, this is fantastic, and yet another opportunity to get some fruits and veggies in the diet. Rather than buying those snack items at the grocery store to go with your homemade lunch try taking two fruits with you instead. You can take anything from a banana to a zip lock bag filled with blueberries. As long as it is fresh, non-process foods, you have a thumbs up.

Make it a Part of the Dish. Do you know it is ok to make fruits or veggies an actual part of your cooked meal? Of course you know that! So go ahead, don't be afraid to put that garlic steamed broccoli in your plate!

If you can follow these three simple tips to putting fresh foods in your diet then you stand a chance of moving into the 21st century when it comes to your recommended fruits and veggies intake. I know it's a lot but if you add just one fruit to these tips on a weekly basis (shucks maybe even daily basis) then you are in a great, great place.