Fruits and vegetables are an important part of a balanced diet. But most people don’t get the recommended amount. The US dietary guidelines say you should have 4-5 servings of vegetables and 3-4 servings of fruit each day.
Still, another study has shown that eating up to 10 servings of fruits and vegetables a day (that’s about 28 ounces) may be effective at preventing the risk of premature death, and staving off things like heart disease, stroke, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
And, eating more fruits and veggies has a host of other benefits, ranging from maintaining a healthy weight, getting better sleep, having a strong immune system, and even maintaining a healthy gut.
It may feel hard to get in your daily dose of fruits and vegetables, but even 3-4 servings are better than nothing so do your best.
Here’s an easy recipe for sneaking more fruits and veggies into your morning routine:
GREEN SMOOTHIE (SERVES 2)
(Based off this recipe from Simple Green Smoothies)
- 2 cups spinach or kale (remove stems if using kale)
- 2 cups coconut water
- 1 cup mango
- 1 cup pineapple
- 1 – 2 bananas
- Blend your spinach and coconut water together until spinach is fully chopped.
- Add fruit and blend to combine with the spinach until smooth.
- Enjoy!
A FEW TIPS FOR Eat More Vegetables:
- This recipe is totally customizable, so feel free to switch out the main ingredients as needed. Change up the greens, swap the fruit, sub regular water, milk or almond milk for the coconut water– your options are really endless.
- Using frozen fruit really helps to make the smoothie nice and icy.
- You can make your smoothie ahead of time and it should keep for a couple of days in the fridge, or you can chop up your veggies and place then into single serving baggies to quickly dump in the blender when you’re ready making this super quick and easy.
