Have you had your 5-a-day today? You know the rule that suggests you need to eat five different pieces of fruit and vegetables every day?
We all know that getting enough fruit and veg is important – studies have highlighted that having your 5-a-day can reduce your chances of having specific health conditions.
However, according to Dr Mellor, a registered dietitian, and researcher at Aston Medical School in Birmingham, there’s an easier way to get enough of the good stuff.
The expert told the Daily Mail that he recommends following the little-known 3:2 ratio.
To break it down, it means that we should all be aiming to eat at least three vegetables and two pieces of fruit every day.
Mellor suggests that Brits should aim to eat a mix of fruit and vegetables especially fresh food with different colours.
Professor Gunter Kuhnle, an expert in nutrition at the University of Reading said that when it comes to the traditional five-a-day rule, “most people struggle to meet it (and have for a long time).”
“But that doesn’t mean it should be abandoned or changed as it gives an incentive to eat more fruits and vegetables.”
Kuhnle thinks there should be a focus on ‘eating the rainbow’ - adding different coloured foods to your diet or eating 30 different plant-based foods each week.
The five-a-day rule came from a study by the World Health Organisation in the 1990s, which was introduced in the UK in 2003.
Some studies have even said that ten pieces of fruit and veg should be eaten a day, but we all know this isn’t realistic, especially in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis.
We’ll stick to at least three veggies and two portions of fruit instead.