Fruits and vegetables are healthy foods that should appear on family menus every day. These foods must have an important role throughout life, but it is essential to incorporate them in childhood to form good eating habits.
Nutrition experts point out that they should be consumed at least five servings of fruits and vegetables every day to get a balanced and healthy diet. These portions should also be varied and consumed in various ways.
By taking five servings of fruits and vegetables a day it is possible to provide, among other beneficial compounds: water, vitamins, minerals, fibers and antioxidants. These foods help the growth and development of the organism and are also, in general, very low energy.
Fruits in the children's diet
We have already talked carefully about fruits in infant feeding, highlighting all their variety and benefits for the organism, as well as establishing the appropriate age of introduction in the diet of babies and children.
The fruit group includes the fresh fruits and natural juices of all kinds: citrus, banana, pear, apple, strawberries, grapes, cherries, peach, apricots, pineapple, kiwi, medlars, watermelon ...
It is best to consume fresh fruits, because the elaborated products (jams, juices, nectars ...) suffer more or less changes that alter the nutritional quality. The fresh fruit also includes delicious presentations such as natural juices, homemade smoothies, fruit salad…
Vegetables in the children's diet
We have also spoken extensively about vegetables in infant feeding to know their properties, age of introduction or ways of preparation.
At group of vegetables They include, for example: green beans, peas, chard, spinach, tomatoes, lettuce, onion, squash, zucchini, carrots, peppers, cucumbers, artichokes, eggplant, cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli ...
Many of them are delicious fresh, others must be cooked. The ones that we cook, can be bought frozen, since in principle they have the same nutritional properties. Of course, if they are cooked at high temperatures and for a prolonged time, there is a greater loss of the nutritional components, especially water-soluble vitamins.
Why take fruits and vegetables daily
Among the advantages that vegetables and vegetables provide is their low calorie intake and that help to eat less food, because they have a high satiety capacity. That is, they take away the feeling of hunger and, therefore, help prevent obesity.
They are also easy to prepare, as simple as they can be eaten raw on most occasions. They are also simple to cook and to find in the market. In general, the local varieties will be the cheapest and environmentally friendly.
Fruits and vegetables help prevent diseases as: cardiovascular diseases, digestive disorders, some types of cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, obesity ...
It is important to note that, because they are vegetables, they do not contain cholesterol, which makes them important in preventing the appearance of high cholesterol levels in the blood.
In short, they are all nutritional advantages of habitually introduce fruits and vegetables into the children's diet. Soon we will return with advice on how to make the little ones effectively take five servings of these foods a day.
