10 Ways To Sneak Some Extra Fruits And Vegetables In Your Family抯 Diet

We all know by now that we should be eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. But knowing and doing are two different things, aren抰 they? Sometimes it is just not easy to get them all in there. We are constantly tempted to fill up on convenience and junk food. If your family is anything like mine, they抎 much rather fill up on a bag of chips or a bowl of rice or pasta instead of trying an apple or a plate of steamed broccoli. So we抣l have to get creative. Here are a few ideas to 搒neak?some extra vegetables and fruits in your family抯 diet.

1. Start the day with a breakfast smoothie. All you have to do is throw some fruits, low-fat yogurt and ice in a blender. You may also want to add a scoop of protein powder in there for good measure. Just blend for a few seconds and you have the perfect breakfast ready to go. I like to sip mine in a thermal cup on the way to work. To make it even more appealing for your kids, use some frozen yogurt or a scoop of ice cream in the smoothie. They won抰 believe that you are letting them have ice cream for breakfast.

2. Dried fruit makes an excellent snack any time of the day. Add some small cartons of raisins to your child抯 lunch box, pack some yogurt-covered raisins in your husband抯 briefcase and keep some trail mix sitting around for snacking. You can also add dried fruit to oatmeal and cereal in the morning. My family loves banana chips in their breakfast cereal.

3. Add some fruits and vegetables to your family抯 sandwiches. You can add some banana, sliced apples or strawberry slices to a peanut butter sandwich. Top a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cucumber and anything else they will eat. You can even make a sub shop style vegetable sandwich by combining several different vegetables with some mayonnaise and cheese on bread.

4. Have a salad bar at dinner. Set out a variety of chopped vegetables, some cheese and croutons as well as several choices of salad dressing along with the lettuce and let everybody create their own perfect salad.

5. Let them drink their fruits and vegetables. Keep an assortment of fruit and vegetable juices in the fridge and encourage everyone to drink them as a snack. Get creative. You could start 揻amily cocktail hour?by pouring everybody a glass of his or her favorite juice over ice. Add some straws, cocktail umbrellas and sit together to talk about how everybody抯 day went.

6. Try this for dessert. Put a small scoop of ice cream or frozen yogurt in a bowl and top it with lots of fresh or frozen fruit.

7. Offer fruits and vegetables as snacks. You can cut apples into slices and top them with peanut butter or cheese. Cube cheese and serve with grapes. Cut up some fresh veggies and serve them with ranch dip. And of course there抯 ants on a log. Spread some cream cheese or peanut butter on the inside of a stick of celery and sprinkle raisins on it (wow, fruit and vegetable in one snack).

8. Try some new fruits and vegetables. Pick something exotic to get your family抯 curiosity. With a little luck their curiosity will outweigh their initial apprehension to trying something new. You could try artichokes, plantains, papaya, mango, star fruit, or anything else you can find in the produce department of your local store.

9. Make a pot of vegetable soup or a stew that抯 heavy on veggies and easy on the meat. Both of these make some great comfort food when the weather gets cold.

10. Start 揗y Veggie Day? Each family member gets to pick a vegetable one day of the week. They qualify to pick a vegetable as long as they tried each vegetable the week before, otherwise they loose a turn and Mom gets to pick.

Incorporate a few of these ideas and you will have everyone in your family eating more fruits and vegetables in no time.

Here is another tip:

Now that everyone in the family has gotten a taste for it, make sure you always have plenty of fresh fruits and veggies available and ready to snack on.

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Don't Forget to Drink Your Fruits and Veggies

Remember the scene at the dinner table when you were a child? Negotiating with your parents on how many bites of peas and carrots you had to take in order to leave the table was most likely a constant struggle.

Unfortunately, people don't always grow out of this negative attitude toward fruits and vegetables. Studies show that the average American consumer eats only three servings of fruits and vegetables a day. When compared to the recommended five to nine servings a day, it's apparent that many of us have a long way to go.

The effort is worth it, though. Studies by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Academy of Sciences suggest that the nutritional goodness of fruits and vegetables, along with a diet that is low in fat, saturated fat and cholesterol, may decrease the risk of developing certain diseases.

To help their patients get the necessary nutrients, some doctors recommend "green drinks." These powdered drink mixes are a natural source of vitamins and minerals. To many people, however, the drinks also have a strong, unbearable taste and an unpalatable texture.

Would you stick with a nutritious drink if you had to hold your nose while consuming it?

To get the health benefits found in green drinks without the unappetizing taste and texture, I recommend Earth's Promise from Enzymatic Therapy. With a combination of 20 vitamin-rich ingredients, one glass of Earth's Promise provides the essential nutrients your body needs to enhance energy, support digestion and boost the immune system. It also is high in fiber. In fact, drinking one glass provides you with more fiber than you would get from eating a bowl of oatmeal.

Earth's Promise comes in three flavors - Strawberry-Kiwi, Elderberry and Peppermint-Tea - making it easier to support a healthy lifestyle. In addition, it is laboratory-tested for purity, safety and performance and meets the highest manufacturing standards.

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