Could you manage ten?

@Fleura (29222)
United Kingdom
March 2, 2017 2:05pm CST
For several years now the UK government has encouraged everyone to eat at least five portions of different fruits and vegetables every day (not counting potatoes). It’s certainly not a bad goal, achievable and easy to visualise, although plenty of people don’t manage to reach it. Now though new studies have shown that although five is good, ten would be even better, with lots of health-promoting effects. This has received a mixed reaction, with some people embracing the idea and some complaining they would be ‘walking compost heaps’ if they tried to eat that much each day! What do you think and have you/do you try to eat plenty of fruit and vegetables? All rights reserved. © Text and image copyright Fleur 2017.
15 people like this
17 responses
@Kandae11 (53696)
3 Mar 17
If that is all I ate I could do ten - most fruits and vegetables have a high percentage of water.
3 people like this
@OneOfMany (12150)
• United States
2 Mar 17
I might be eating ten currently because of a blood clot I'm trying to get rid of. Fresh pineapple dissolves blood clots (the only fruit that does), so I'm eating a lot of it (my lips are wrinkly from the acid). Apples, kiwi, oranges, lemons, ginger, garlic, and onions help prevent them, so I'm eating all of that in my diet now. I just learned about the fruits yesterday, so I've only been dieting on it since then. I don't know how long I could eat these fruits all the time without getting tired of them. Today it's stopped hurting (a week and a day after learning about the clot), so I imagine that the fruits might be helping out. Even if you don't get ten servings, make sure you eat at least a few of the above! (limes are included too)
2 people like this
@OneOfMany (12150)
• United States
2 Mar 17
@Fleura Well good to know. Like I said, it's a necessity at the moment! That clot hasn't been very much fun. As for the pineapple though, it has to be eaten raw or loses that helpful component. But then, when they say 10 servings, how many servings are in one pineapple or apple or anything else? I doubt it is the whole fruit.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
3 Mar 17
@OneOfMany Supposed to be 80g I think. So one average-size apple or orange but a couple of clementines or three plums, a handful of berries, that sort of thing.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
It's the enzyme in pineapple that makes your tongue and lips feel funny, not acid. But well done on getting a good variety of fruits! You can eat them in all sorts of ways, raw or cooked, whole or pureed. Not sure if I could manage 10 every day but it's good to have something to aim for I guess!
1 person likes this
@shaggin (71671)
• United States
2 Mar 17
I think it would be nearly impossible to eat all the settings of each food group we need in one day. That is why I take a multivitamin.
2 people like this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
Yes it does seem like quite a lot, I'm not sure. Today I had a banana, some blueberries and a clementine for breakfast, with coffee. At lunch I had a poached egg on toast with an avocado, some cherry tomatoes and olives, then a plum, a couple of pieces of chocolate and some dried figs. For dinner we've had chicken and mushroom pie which also had lots of onion and peppers in it, and ate it with roasted parsnips and sweet potatoes and boiled carrots and broccoli. Then tiramisu for dessert! So altogether I guess I've eaten 14 different fruits/vegetables today and I certainly haven't felt deprived or found it hard - but not all of them would count as a full portion, one plum for example.
2 people like this
@shaggin (71671)
• United States
2 Mar 17
@Fleura That all sounds very yummy. I barely eat any of the food groups in a day. It is too expensive for me to eat healthy. I tend to eat whatever I can find that is the lowest cost. I have been trying to eat a little healthier lately.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
@shaggin I don't think it's more expensive, people just think it is and that puts them off!
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
A lot of fruit seems to (how can I put it politely?) loosen my bowels too much.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
3 Mar 17
@pgntwo Any video you put up is always worth a watch and this one is no exception - it's great fun. I should have used it as an accompianment to my milking the cow limerick.
2 people like this
@pgntwo (22408)
• Derry, Northern Ireland
3 Mar 17
@jaboUK You're welcome! I think YouTube™ is an amazing resource.
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
Sometimes it takes a little while for your body to adjust to changes in diet, so you might get used to it.
1 person likes this
@pgntwo (22408)
• Derry, Northern Ireland
3 Mar 17
Hmm... Look how much vegetable matter a cow eats, and it gets blamed for generating copious quantities of greenhouse gasses in the form of methane...
Cows singing "I am Cow" by the arrogant worms
1 person likes this
@pgntwo (22408)
• Derry, Northern Ireland
4 Mar 17
@Fleura But if we eat more fruit and veg...? Just a thought, as beans, lentils and Brussels sprouts have a most gaseous effect on many people. For example.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
4 Mar 17
True but I think their digestive system is rather different to ours!
1 person likes this
@DianneN (247219)
• United States
14 Mar 17
Small portions I can do. Large, no way!
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
14 Mar 17
Yes we often have a variety of vegetables but I'm not sure each one counts as a full portion.
1 person likes this
@DianneN (247219)
• United States
15 Mar 17
@Fleura I guess it would depend on the size. I suppose eating an entire watermelon wouldn't be good. Lol!
1 person likes this
• Philippines
2 Mar 17
I love eating but I guess it is much enjoyable if I don't count what I eat. God bless.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
That's true but you can give yourself an extra pat on the back at the end of the day if you ate healthily too!
@marlina (154165)
• Canada
2 Mar 17
10 would be too much for me.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
We have been trying to eat more fresh produce for a while anyway so it's interesting to see how well we do. They can be added to meals in all sorts of ways so it's not just a case of munching through a pile of raw vegetables.
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 17
This is what I had today: Breakfast was a banana, some blueberries and a clementine, with coffee. At lunch I had a poached egg on toast with an avocado, some cherry tomatoes and olives, then a plum, a couple of pieces of chocolate and some dried figs. For dinner we've had chicken and mushroom pie which also had lots of onion and peppers in it, and ate it with roasted parsnips and sweet potatoes and boiled carrots and broccoli. Then tiramisu for dessert! It didn't seem hard, I guess it's just a change of habit.
@LadyDuck (459538)
• Switzerland
3 Mar 17
I think that people should not be forced to eat what they do not feel comfortable to eat. For me 5 is more than enough.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
4 Mar 17
No not forced, but encouraged perhaps? And for people who rarely manage any vegetable matter in a day, any improvement is a step forward!
1 person likes this
@Poppylicious (11133)
3 Mar 17
The government change their minds so often about diet that it's hard to know what to believe. In this instance it's just common sense that the more fruit and vegetables you eat, the healthier you'll probably be. Unless you have an ongoing health issue which fruit and veg makes worse, of course.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
3 Mar 17
All they can do is respond to the latest research. If they didn't they'd be accused of giving outdated advice and not giving the population the benefit of scientific advances!
@Ronrybs (17871)
• London, England
3 Mar 17
Sometimes I hit ten, but rarely. Mostly I manage 7 or 8 a day
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
4 Mar 17
You're doing well, some people struggle to manage one!
1 person likes this
@Ronrybs (17871)
• London, England
4 Mar 17
@Fleura there are days when eating more than two or three is a struggle!
1 person likes this
@reskyyandi (3616)
• Indonesia
5 Mar 17
I really enjoyed to eat fruits or vegetables
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
6 Mar 17
Me too, there is plenty of variety so there must be something that everyone likes!
@WriterAI (5373)
• Bulgaria
4 Mar 17
It is too exoensive to some people to reach it.
1 person likes this
• Hamilton, Bermuda
26 Oct 17
i could get it accomplished if i had 5 in a smoothie then i ate 5 i can do it with no problem so yes i know i can accomplish ten a day without any problems.
1 person likes this
@Fleura (29222)
• United Kingdom
26 Oct 17
I agree, smoothies really are a saving grace. I like a mixture better than just a plain item of fruit, and smoothies are easier than a fruit salad to make - and you can use up any fruit that's a bit past its best as well, or freeze things to use.
• United States
3 Mar 17
I try to eat healthy and enjoy all sorts of fruits and vegetables. I probably eat more vegetables than fruit since fruit is so expensive here. I don't know about 10 servings in one day but I do try for the 5.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (326249)
• Rockingham, Australia
3 Mar 17
If I ate everything I was supposed to - two serves of this, two serves of that, etc - I'd be the side of a house.
1 person likes this
@FayeHazel (40246)
• United States
3 Mar 17
It would be healthy, but I don't think I could do it....
1 person likes this