General, Nutrition Advice, Wellbeing

How to get your 5-a-day, every day.

Fruits and vegetables should always form part of a healthy diet. There is significant evidence that consuming 5 portions of fruit and vegetables per day has many health benefits. A portion is classed as 80g, so you should be consuming 400g of fruit and vegetables per day.

Ensuring that you have your 5 a day will lower the risk of serious health problems such as heart disease, strokes and some types of cancer.

If you don’t get enough fruit and veg into your diet, either because you don’t like them or because you don’t eat enough, you should consider a supplement such as Ultra Daily.

5 Reasons for eating 5-a-day

  1. Fruit and vegetables are packed with vitamins and minerals that your body needs
  2. They are full of fibre; this can help maintain a healthy gut as well as reduce your risk of bowel cancer.
  3. They can reduce the risk of various health problems
  4. Fruit and vegetables contribute to a healthy, balanced diet.
  5. There are so many amazing varieties and tastes to suit all.

A variety of fruits and vegetables have different benefits, so it is important to consume lots of different types. If you find it hard to have 5 portions a day, take a supplement like Ultra Daily to bolster your intake and ensure you get the benefits.

Your body needs vitamins and minerals that can be found in fruit and vegetables to function. Vitamins are separated into water soluble and fat soluble.

Water soluble vitamins

Water soluble vitamins most important job is to release energy from food, as well as keeping tissue healthy.  Here are some examples of water soluble vitamins and the role they play in your body.

  • Biotin (vitamin B7)
  • Folic acid (folate, vitamin B9)
  • Niacin (vitamin B3)
  • Panothetic acid (vitamin B5)
  • Riboflavin (vitamin B2)
  • Thiamine (vitamin B1)
  • Vitamin B6
  • Vitamin B12
  • Vitamin C

Energy release.
Several B vitamins are key components of certain coenzymes (molecules that aid enzymes) that help release energy from food.

Energy production.
Thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, and biotin engage in energy production.

Build proteins and cells.
Vitamins B6, B12, and folic acid are responsible for metabolising amino acids (the building blocks of proteins) and helping cells multiply. If you are deficient in these vitamins your body will not process and absorb proteins.

Make collagen.
One of many roles played by vitamin C is to help make collagen, which knits together wounds, supports blood vessel walls, and forms a base for teeth and bones.

Fat soluble vitamins

These vitamins help keep your eyes, skin, lungs, gastrointestinal tract, and nervous system in good repair. Here are some of the other essential roles these vitamins play:

  • Vitamin A
  • Vitamin D
  • Vitamin E
  • Vitamin K

Build bones.
Bone formation would be impossible without vitamins A, D, and K.

Protect vision.
Vitamin A also helps keep cells healthy and protects your vision.

Interact favourably.
Without vitamin E, your body would have difficulty absorbing and storing vitamin A.

Protect the body.
Vitamin E also acts as an antioxidant (a compound that helps protect the body against damage from unstable molecules).

Major minerals

The body requires and stores large amounts of the major minerals. These minerals are no more important to your health than the trace minerals; they are just present in greater amounts.

Major minerals travel through the body in various ways. Potassium, for example, is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream, where it circulates freely and is excreted by the kidneys, much like a water-soluble vitamin. Calcium is more like a fat-soluble vitamin because it requires a carrier for absorption and transport.

Major minerals

  • Calcium
  • Chloride
  • Magnesium
  • Phosphorus
  • Potassium
  • Sodium
  • Sulphur

One of the key tasks of major minerals is to maintain the proper balance of water in the body. Sodium, chloride, and potassium take the lead in doing this. Three other major minerals—calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium—are important for healthy bones. Sulphur helps stabilize protein structures, including some of those that make up hair, skin, and nails.

Trace minerals

These are found in tiny quantities in your body. Yet their contributions are just as essential as those of major minerals such as calcium and phosphorus, which each account for more than a pound of your body weight.

  • Chromium
  • Copper
  • Fluoride
  • Iodine
  • Iron
  • Manganese
  • Molybdenum
  • Selenium
  • zinc

Trace minerals carry out a diverse set of tasks. Here are a few examples:

  • Iron is best known for ferrying oxygen throughout the body.
  • Fluoride strengthens bones and wards off tooth decay.
  • Zinc helps blood clot, is essential for taste and smell, and bolsters the immune response.
  • Copper helps form several enzymes, one of which assists with iron metabolism and the creation of hemoglobin, which carries oxygen in the blood.

The other trace minerals perform equally vital jobs, such as helping to block damage to body cells and forming parts of key enzymes or enhancing their activity.

Fruit and vegetables will provide you with a lot of the vitamins and minerals as well as all important fibre.  It is essential that you consume them regularly if you want your body to work efficiently. If you struggle to eat fruit and vegetables regularly a supplement like Ultra Daily is a fantastic way to guarantee goodness every day.