With all of the discussion in recent years over the importance of getting your five a day, it can be difficult to know what actually counts as a portion. For adults, a portion weighs around 80g whilst, for children, the portion size is roughly the amount they can fit in the palm of their hand.
With small-sized fruit, one portion amounts to two or more pieces such as two plums, two satsumas, three apricots, six lychees, seven strawberries or fourteen cherries. Medium-sized fruits are fruits such as apples, bananas or nectarines, which you only need to eat one of to tick off a portion from your daily quota. Larger fruits such as grapefruits or pineapples are a little trickier to decipher – for pineapples or melons, a 5cm slice equals a portion, whilst half a grapefruit is equal to one of your five a day.
Many people aren’t aware that dried and canned fruit also count towards your five a day. For dried fruit, a portion is around 30g – this amounts to one heaped tablespoon or raisins, currants, sultanas or mixed fruit, two figs, three prunes or one handful of dried banana chips. Tinned fruit is approximately the same amount as you would eat for a fresh portion of fruit.
Vegetables are often more difficult to weigh up so it is useful to know that when you’re eating your greens, two broccoli spears or four heaped tablespoons of kale, spinach or green beans all amount to one of your five. Similarly, three tablespoons of cooked carrots, peas or sweetcorn also count towards.
Pulses and beans are often forgotten but all count towards your five a day – add around three heaped tablespoons of baked beans, butter beans or chickpeas to stews or soups to add a portion to your meal. Smoothies and juices are another easy way of getting your fruit intake – one 150ml glass of freshly squeezed juice counts as a portion, but it only counts the once. Any glasses after the first don’t count towards your daily quota. Likewise, a maximum of two smoothies a day count – bear in mind though that blended fruit contains more sugars than whole fruits, as the sugar is extracted from the fruit’s structure, which can cause tooth decay if eaten too regularly.
Knowing your portion sizes and quantities is useful when deciphering how many portions you have consumed each day, and can help you stay on track towards your goal of eating your five a day, every day.
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