Do you cook and shop for a household, including a fussy eater or two?
It’s easier than you might think to ensure everyone gets five portions of fruit and vegetables a day.There are many ways to introduce more fruit and vegetables into your family’s diet. The wider the variety of fruit and vegetables you eat, the better.Dietitian Azmina Govindji gives a few simple tips to get you started.
Think about your day
There are 5 A DAY opportunities throughout your family’s day.
“Not all those opportunities are immediately obvious,” says Govindji. “A cooked breakfast, for example, can give you several portions if you have grilled mushrooms, baked beans, grilled tomatoes and a glass of unsweetened 100% fruit juice.”
If you have cereal or porridge for breakfast, add some fruit, such as sliced bananas, strawberries or sultanas.
Govindji highlights some other 5 A DAY opportunities:
- Morning break at school. All children aged between four and six at Local Education Authority-maintained schools are entitled to one free piece of fruit or vegetable a day, which is usually given out at break time. If your child is older, you could send them to school with a piece of fruit to eat at break time. The School Food Regulations ensure that fruit and/or vegetables are provided at all school food outlets, including breakfast clubs, tuck shops and vending machines.
- Lunchtime at school. A school lunch provides your child with a portion of fruit and a portion of vegetables. If you give your child a packed lunch, there are many ways to add fruit and vegetables. Dried fruit counts towards their 5 A DAY, so why not try sultanas or dried apricots? Put salad in their sandwiches or give them carrot or celery sticks, cherry tomatoes, satsumas or seedless grapes. A lot of swapping goes on at lunch, so talk to the mums of your child’s friends to see if you can all give your children at least one portion.
- On the way home from school. At home time, kids are often very hungry. Take this opportunity to give them a fruit or vegetable snack. This could be a small handful of dried fruit, a banana, a pear, clementines or carrot sticks. When they’re really hungry, they’ll try foods they might otherwise refuse.
- Dinner time. Get into the habit of having two different vegetables on the dinner table. You don’t have to insist that the children eat them, but if Mum and Dad always do, they may end up trying them. Vegetables in dishes such as stews and casseroles also count. When cooking these dishes, avoid adding extra fat, salt and sugar, and use lean cuts of meat.
Get children involved early
Getting your child involved in choosing and preparing fruit and vegetables can encourage them to eat more.
“Familiarise young children with the colours and shapes of fruits and vegetables as early as possible,” says Govindji.
“Each weekly shop, let them choose a fruit or vegetable they’d like to try. Supervise your child in the kitchen while they help you prepare it.”
Present your children with as wide a variety of fruit and vegetables as possible and make eating them a normal part of family life.
“If your children aren’t keen, canned vegetables, such as sweetcorn, lentils and peas, can be a good place to start,” says Govindji.
Disguising vegetables, by grating carrots into bolognese sauce, for example, can also work, but don’t rely solely on this.
“Try not to reinforce the idea that vegetables are unpleasant and always need to be hidden in foods. Instead, have fun together by trying lots of different fruit and veg and finding what your children like.”
The focus on routine, planning, and creating supportive environments at home applies just as much to the spaces we live in as it does to daily habits like eating well.
When households are designed with intention, whether through functional kitchens, shared dining areas, or comfortable communal spaces, they naturally encourage healthier choices and more meaningful interactions.
Creating a home environment that encourages healthy habits and meaningful interactions also sets the stage for thoughtful transitions when it’s time to move on.
Families or homeowners who have nurtured their living spaces with care may find that selling their property becomes an opportunity to pass on that same sense of comfort and functionality to the next occupants.
For those looking to streamline the process, companies that buy houses fast offer a way to manage the sale efficiently, reducing stress and minimizing the usual delays of the traditional market. This approach allows homeowners to focus on their next chapter while ensuring their well-maintained spaces continue to support the everyday lives of others.
A home that supports everyday life makes it easier for families, sharers, or occupants at different life stages to settle into positive routines, feel secure, and take pride in their surroundings.
As living arrangements evolve, many properties are now home to younger occupants who may be renting for the first time, sharing with friends, or balancing study and independence, which brings a different set of considerations for owners.
Maintaining safe, well-managed homes that support daily living requires attention to both the physical property and the responsibilities that come with renting it out, making insurance for landlords letting to students or young tenants a practical part of protecting that balance.
By ensuring properties are properly covered and well maintained, landlords can support stable tenancies and create environments where residents can focus on building routines, community, and a sense of home, much like families do around the kitchen table.
Sourced from: www.nhs.uk
