How to increase your intake of fruits and veggies

by Jeni Tackett – Registered Dietitian, Trinity Medical Center

Now that you are a pro at planning healthy meals and snacks, we need to look at what you are eating.  Eating a plant-based diet will help you lose weight.  You can still eat meat, yogurt, cheese, butter, and eggs, but the majority of your plate should consist of plant foods.  Plant foods are nutrient dense.  Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes are low-calorie foods that are high in vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and fiber.

Watch the video for more hints, as wells as Jeni’s Apple Test.

The fiber found in plant foods (but lacking in all animal products) fills up our stomachs and gives a sense of fullness.  I believe that when you meet your nutrient needs, your body does not crave empty-calorie junk foods.  When you eat a Clementine instead of a cookie for dessert, your body receives vitamin C, folic acid, and fiber versus processed flour and sugar.  You may crave more and more cookies as your nutrient needs are not met with a cookie.  With the Clementine, you receive a satisfying high fiber snack that is also deliciously sweet.

Easy ways to increase fruits and veggies:

• Think of the fruits and vegetable you like best and keep those fruits and vegetables stocked in your home.
• After you buy your groceries, come home and cut up veggies, put them in baggies, and have them at the front of your refrigerator so that you’ll grab them.
• Put fruits in a fruit bowl on your kitchen table to remind you and your family to eat fruit every day.
• Blend frozen fruit with low fat milk for a yummy smoothie.
• Take grapes off the vine, wash them, and put them in a bowl in the refrigerator.
• Cut up your favorite fruits and make a colorful fruit salad.
• Bring fruits and vegetables with you to work, on long car trips, and when you are running errands.
• Have a “car apple” on your way home from work to curb your appetite before dinner.
• Double up on portions of vegetables at dinners.  Steam-fresh veggies in the freezer section are quick and easy to prepare.
• In the evening, if you feel hungry eat a fruit or vegetable.  Sliced strawberries sure taste like dessert!

You should strive for a minimum of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day.  That could be two pieces of fruit per day, 1 cup of raw veggies, and 1 cup of steamed veggies (which counts as 2 servings).  Plant foods fill you up with lots of nutrients yet very few calories, and I stand by my claim that I do not know anyone overweight from eating too many fruits and vegetables.

A quote to inspire you on your healthy-eating-journey:

“To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.” -La Rochefoucauld

Jeni Tackett is a registered dietitian at Trinity Medical Center and the Two Rivers YMCA. Jeni majored in Nutrition and Dietetics at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Caroline. She lives East Moline with her husband, Nathan and their two children, Noah and Lily and two dogs. Jack and Lola.For a listing of all of Jeni’s blog posts on MVHNews, click here.