This week is Food Awareness Week, promoted by the British Diabetic Association and designed to urge 16-24 year olds to eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables every day. Coinciding with Europe Against Cancer week, the Give Me Five campaign has been launched in response to recent research that displayed a distinct lack of greens in most young people’s diets. It hopes to remedy this by telling young people that eating greens will protect against cancer and improve their looks.
The research was carried out by the government and found that less than half the recommended five portion of fruit and vegetables were eaten by four-eighteen year olds, and that males ate even less than females. Even more worrying for nutritional experts, a fifth of youngsters had not eaten any fruit at all in the week before they were questioned.
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Through jokes, meal suggestions and dietary advice, the Give Me Five campaign hopes to convince the nation’s youth that eating greens is important. Indeed, education is necessary. Only 35% of adults know that they should be eating five portions a day, and the chairwoman of the Community Nutrition Group, Jane Brown, has commented: “Against this background of low intakes and misunderstanding of what counts as a portion, dieticians are pleased to be able to work with young people to show how easy it can be to include more fruit and vegetables.”
The Healthier Nation white paper, published by the government, and July’s NHS plan also pledged to improve the country’s diet and draw attention to the five a day recommendation.
The British Diabetic Association has reiterated its understanding of a green portion, which may be: a medium sized pear, apple or orange, two tablespoons of vegetables, a dessert bowl of salad, a cup of grapes or a glass of fruit juice.
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By GlobalData
