by Marta Allison

Created on: October 10, 2008   Last Updated: August 08, 2010

Nutritionist recommend 5 to 9 servings of fruit and vegetables everyday. The health benefits from a well balanced diet are undeniable. Benefits from cancer prevention, to visual, kidney, heart and brain health have been featured in many magazines and newspaper articles. Fruit and vegetables are a valuable foundation of the American Heart Association food plan. It can be a challenge adding this amount to your diet, considering our busy lives with work, transportation, business, home and social obligations. Here are a few strategies to fit fruit and vegetables into your diet and enjoy their healthy benefits.

Add strawberries, bananas or blueberries to your cereal. Really any fruit in season will serve the purpose. Try adding a half of a microwaved apple, peach, pear or apricot... mash and sprinkle lightly with sugar substitute and cinnamon to add to your whole wheat toast or waffle or English muffin. You can even top off cooked oatmeal with this delicious fruit topping. Left over refrigerated fruit topping is great on crackers, on cottage cheese, or on angel food cake.

Have fruit juices as a mid morning and late afternoon beverage in place of diet soda or coffee. You can drink juices with meals , after work outs. Juices are easy to carry in your purse and tote to sporting events, or consume in the car between errands. Kids love fruit juice and it postpones their taste for sugary drinks and sodas.

Make a batch of refreshing gazpacho over the week end, blend and enjoy as a healthful refreshingly, flavorful drink. You will be surprised how quickly a batch will disappear. Many a macho man in our family has added Tabasco sauce to gazpacho and used as a non alcoholic bloody Mary. Use as base for homemade taco sauce or salsa. Use as delicious garnish over fish and meats.

Serve shish-ka-bobs with generous chunks of fruits and vegetables,

Add vegetables to purchased or homemade pizzas for increased flavor and texture.

Snack on sugar pea pods, cucumber slices, carrots, celery, green and yellow peppers, green beans with a low calorie dressing as a dip.

Frozen grapes make great crunchy snacks to munch on during family movie night.

Blend vegetables to add to spaghetti or pasta sauces. Add extra vegetables to your canned soups or homemade soups and stews.

Enjoy stir frying vegetables often with small servings of tofu, meat, poultry or fish.

Make baked sweet potato fries in place of regular french fries. You can season the sweet potato fries with any spice that suits your cravings.

Make smoothies of fresh fruits, crushed ice and fruit juice.

Make mixed fruit salads , add grapes, mandarin oranges, and kiwis to chicken salads.

Carry grapes, apples, peaces and pears for quick snacks.

Use zucchini, squashes and other fruits and vegetable in snack breads.

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