A healthy lifestyle is incomplete without an assortment of fresh fruits included in your diet! Eating your required daily intake of fruits not only provides you with a variety of nutrients necessary for your health but also provides you with a healthy satiating feeling. Consuming fruits instead of eating snacks that contain high amounts of sodium or sugary snacks is also a healthy way of maintaining your weight. Fresh Fruit Alliances lists a few ways you can include more fruits in your diet.
Breakfast:
· Add fruit to your cereal, oatmeal, waffles or pancakes at breakfast. You can try adding bananas, raisins or berries to your cereal.
· Frozen fruits are nearly as healthy as the fresh stuff, and only take a few minutes of preparation.
· Eat melon, grapefruit or other fruit.
· Drink a small glass (180 ml) of juice. Be sure it’s 100% fruit juice without excess sodium or sugar – not “fruit drink,” "cocktail" or “punch.”
Lunch and dinner:
· Combine fruit with your main meal courses. Raisins, apples and tangerine slices add sweet, crunchy variety to a salad. Apples complement pork, pineapple is great with fish and orange slices are perfect with chicken.
· Eating fruits with major meals also provides the required intake of fibre which in turn aids digestion.
· Eating “toothbrush fruits” such as apples and pears keep your mouth clean after a meal which is particularly useful if you’re in a rush.
Snacks:
· Snack on raw fruits instead of chips or pretzels. Keep fruits in your car, your office or your backpack.
· Drink 100 % juice instead of addictive coffee, tea or soda
· Keep fruits in line of sight. Grapes, oranges, bananas and apples make a colourful 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.
Dessert:
· Choose fruit for dessert – They can be fresh, frozen, stewed or baked, but they add to your daily produce quota. Eat dry fruits sparingly as they tend to be high in calories.
· Create your yoghurt flavours with plain yoghurt and different combinations of fresh fruit.
· Try berries, melons or dates for a naturally sweet dessert rather than the usual candy bar, cookie or ice cream sandwich.
Who says being healthy cannot be tasty? Your body will reward you many times over for your healthy lifestyle. Once you start including fruits in your diet, you can start eating fruits of different colours because you will get a variety of nutrients.