Ninety per cent of Leeds children not eating their five a day - making them among lowest in UK

Ninety per cent of Leeds children are not eating their five a day, making them among the lowest in the UK when it comes to consuming enough fruit and vegetables.
Nintey per cent of Leeds children are not eating their five a day, according to new research.Nintey per cent of Leeds children are not eating their five a day, according to new research.
Nintey per cent of Leeds children are not eating their five a day, according to new research.

The new statistics follow proposals to give Leeds pupils one vegan and one vegetarian school dinner a week, in a bid to tackle climate change and get them to eat more vegetables.

-> Vegan school dinners to be served at primary schools in LeedsThe research, which was conducted by Fruit Bowl, found that on average in the UK, children are only eating three portions of fruit and vegetables.

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This is well below advice from the World Health Organisation, which recommends eating a minimum of 400g.

The new research found that one of the issues is confusion over what counts as a portion of fruit and vegtables.

A third of mums and dads surveyed believed that a fruit yogurt counts,1 in 5 thought a strawberry milkshake counted and 1 in 10 considered chips as one of their kids’ five-a-day.

Fewer than half know that foods such as tinned veg, frozen fruit, sweet potatoes and turnips count, and almost all were fooled by things such as spaghetti hoops, guacamole and chickpeas, which are ALL actually part of your five-a-day.

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Nutritional Therapist, Filomena Komodromou “Fruit and vegetables contain a variety of key nutrients vital for the growth and development of children.

"For example, vitamin C, found in strawberries, broccoli, peppers and kiwis, boost our immune system.

"They also contain fibre which is important for improving gut health.”

Filomena Komodromou’s tips to get children eating fruits and vegetables include:

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Think colour - chop up some crunchy crudités such as carrots, pepper, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, radish, celery and serve with hummus or cream cheese for a healthy filling snack

Get them to help in the kitchen – even toddlers can help too. Peeling, chopping or grating can be done quite safely by children supervised by an adult.

Blend it up! Homemade smoothies are a great way of getting their five-a-day and sneaking in some veg too.

Add mashed banana or grated apple/pear to porridge

Make frozen fruit lollies or banana pancakes