Vegetables

Please, I just want to make sure I understand the fruit and vegetable ratio correctly. For 1 serving of fruit, there are 2-3 servings of vegetables. So, if I have blueberries in the morning and an apple for a snack, should the 2 pieces of fruit be balanced by 4-6 servings of vegetables? Thank you.

Take this rule with a grain of salt; in reality, this ratio simply aims to guide us to have more vegetables than fruits on our plates throughout the day. You practice this in exercises with the support of algorithms in the educational app, where each representative is evaluated. In fact, the definition of a "portion" also includes the weight factor, which you are not required to track in the exercises. Therefore, focus on ensuring that this ratio is respected on a long-term average; an excess of fruit would disproportionately increase the sugar content in the diet.

Hello,

I suspect that my digestive issues might be linked to the amount of fiber in my diet. I lean towards a vegetarian/vegan diet. When creating meal plans in the application and monitoring the fiber content, I noticed that I meet the limit even with a relatively (for me) small amount of vegetables, combined with predominantly whole grains, and it becomes too much. Is the solution to include cooked vegetables, peeled grains, white flour to ease digestion? (there, I encounter high GI and load issues)... How can this problem be addressed for vegans?

Thank you.

Once you reduce the amount of animal products in your diet, the volume of plant-based foods will automatically increase. If, in such a situation, the foundation of the diet consists of minimally processed ingredients that contain a significantly higher fiber content, it is natural for the amount of fiber in the diet to rise as well. The digestive tract will always react to an excess of fiber in its own way, and this cannot be avoided. It is necessary to adjust the diet in such a way that you also monitor the fiber content in the daily regimen, and if the reaction of the digestive tract indicates that you have exceeded the limit, it is wise to reduce fiber intake and simultaneously thoroughly cook its sources to reduce the digestive burden. The complexity of this process increases towards veganism, meaning you will have to select foods that form the core of your diet even more carefully.

Hello,
I would just like to ask out of curiosity if it is quantified percentage-wise how much nutrients fruit or vegetables lose if they are not grown organically :)
Thank you.

Although there are studies comparing the nutritional value of conventionally grown and organic fruits and vegetables, their results are not conclusive (they vary depending on the type of fruit or vegetable, soil, climatic conditions, and other factors). Generally, it can be said that organic fruits and vegetables have been shown to contain higher amounts of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals than conventionally grown crops.

Hello,

I would like to ask for your opinion on sugar intake. The WHO recommends a maximum of 50g, ideally 25g, of simple sugars, but this seems unrealistic to me. Two portions of fruit at 150 grams already add up to 30g, not to mention the inclusion of dairy products, vegetables, and other foods. I understand that this is an averaged value, but simple sugars are very often cited as the cause of various health issues, yet 25g of sugars is really a very low threshold.

Thank you.

Current recommendations from the WHO regarding sugar intake aim for a maximum of 90 g per day, with 50 g being added sugars, and there is consideration to reduce this amount to 25 g. When assessing the quality of nutrition, it is important to distinguish between naturally occurring sugars in foods and those added during processing. The fact is that fruits and fruit products (juices, compotes, jams, etc.) are the richest sources of naturally occurring sugars, so it is advisable to monitor the proportion of this food group in the diet. The same applies to the category of foods with added sugars, where there is a significantly higher risk of excess. This is one of the many meaningful examples and essentially a reason why it pays to monitor the nutritional quality of food, as numbers can sometimes speak clearly.

25 g of added sugars per day may initially seem like a low limit, but when converted, this amounts to 6 sugar cubes, which, when visualized in this way, takes on a different dimension than an abstract value. You are correct in stating that reaching this limit is not easy, especially in the long term. On the other hand, it is necessary to realize that this is a dietary component that we actually do not need and that does not benefit our health. This topic should lead to reflection on how strictly we will monitor the proportion of natural and industrially processed foods in our diet.