Tracking Your Fruits and Veggies

Here is a free printable chart from Edible Suggestions.  I love tracking how many fruits and veggies I eat every day.  It not only shows me how many I am eating, but the variety of colors I am getting as well.  Kids love doing this too!  Each time you eat ½ cup serving of fruits or veggies enter a tally mark.  If you eat a fruit or veggie that counts as 1 cup enter 2 tally marks.  For example, if you eat 1 large orange, put 2 tally marks under the orange column.  Aim for 5-9 tally marks every day.  See the Eat Right With Color post if you need a reminder as to what counts as ½ or 1 cup of fruits and vegetables.

	Red	Orange	Yellow	Green	Purple/ Blue	White
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Total

Eat Right With Color

March is National Nutrition Month and the theme this year is “Eat Right with Color.”  This means it is good to incorporate a variety of colorful fruits and vegetables into your diet. Brightly colored foods are packed with vitamins and nutrients.  I have a few simple rules for eating healthy and Rule #1 is Eat Your Fruits and Vegetables!  The reason this is my number one rule is because consumption of fruits and vegetables is associated with a reduced risk of many chronic diseases and it helps weight management because fruits and vegetables are relatively low in calories.  Sounds simple enough, right?   How many of you know how many fruits and vegetables you should be eating everyday or what one serving actually is?  Here are a few Edible Suggestions to get you started.

Recommended Amounts of Fruits and Vegetables

 

	Age	Vegetables	Fruit
Children	2-3	1 cup	1 cup
	4-8	1 ½ cups	1-1 ½ cups
Girls	9-13	2 cups	1 ½ cups
	14-18	2 ½ cups	1 ½ cups
Boys	9-13	2 ½  cups	1 ½ cups
	14-18	3 cups	2 cups
Women	19-30	2 ½  cups	2 cups
	31-50	2 ½ cups	1 ½ cups
	51+	2 cups	1 ½ cups
Men	19-30	3 cups	2 cups
	31-50	3 cups	2 cups
	51+	2 ½ cups	2 cups

**These amounts are based on individuals who get 30 minutes of moderate physical activity per day. 

Examples of  ½ Cup Fruits or Vegetables

4 oz applesauce

1 medium cantaloupe wedge

16 grapes

½ medium grapefruit

4 large strawberries

5 broccoli florets

6 baby carrots

1 large plum

¼ cup dried fruit (e.g. raisins)

1 cup of raw leafy greens (spinach, lettuce, cabbage)

½ cup of vegetable or fruit juice

½ cup cooked corn

½ cup cooked green beans

½ cup tomatoes

½ cup mushrooms

½ cup onion

Examples of 1 Cup Vegetables or Fruits

1 small apple

1 large banana

1 cup melon (any kind)

1 large orange

1 large peach (2 halves canned)

1 medium pear

1 cup chunked pineapple

1 large bell pepper

1 cup mashed pumpkin

1 large sweet potato

1 medium white potato

1 cup mashed potato

1 cup squash

1 large ear of corn

1 cup green peas

1 cup raw or cooked cauliflower

1 cup cooked spinach

Think of it this way.  One cup is about the size of a baseball or your fist.  If this all seems too complicated the new 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend filling half of your plate with fruits and vegetables at each meal or snacking occasion. 

Introduction

Hi!  My name is Erica and this is my food and nutrition blog.  I am a Registered Dietitian, Licensed Medical Nutrition Therapist and Certified Lactation Counselor.  I started Edible Suggestions because I love food and nutrition, and I want to help others love it too.  The word edible means non-poisonous and safe to eat, which is what I want this blog to be:  non-poisonous suggestions.  That means you will not find any fad diets or get skinny quick gimmicks here.  I will give you some simple suggestions that you can use everyday to eat more nutritious foods.  I will also be posting some delicious recipes along the way to help you accomplish this.  I hope you enjoy the blog!