Sept. 22, 2002 – Celebrate National 5 A Day Week, Sept. 22-28, by forking into a colorful Tropical Five Fruit Salad. It's a tasty way to start fulfilling this year's event theme — "Eating 5 to 9 and Feeling Fine, Fruits and Vegetables Anytime!"
The 5 A Day for Better Health program was developed in 1991 as a partnership between the National Cancer Institute and the Produce for Better Health Foundation. This unique partnership has been successful in increasing public awareness of the health benefits of fruits and vegetables, and also increasing their consumption in the United States, including the Virgin Islands.
Just look at the plastic bags for fruits and vegetables in the produce department of our supermarkets, and you'll see the 5 A Day logo. Ditto for the price signs for various produce items and on bagged produce items themselves.
This year, the 5 A Day message has taken on yet another facet — color. The idea is based on the book "Eat by Color" by David Heber. The author, a physician, makes the point that color is the key to good nutrition:. Produce that comes in vivid hues contains an arsenal of disease-fighting chemicals called phytonutrients.
To make sure you get enough of these vital ingredients, add a single serving from each of these color families — red/purple, red, orange, yellow/green, green and white/green — to your usual daily diet of whole grains, protein and healthy fats. The salad recipe here will get you started!
Tropical Five-Fruit Salad
2 medium-sized oranges, peeled, sliced and quartered
2 cups papaya, peeled, seeded and cubed
2 bananas, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 red apples, cored and cut into chunks
1 cup pineapple chunks
1/4 cup orange juice concentrate
Juice from one fresh lime plus 1/4 teaspoon grated peel
2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint leaves
Combine all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. For an extra-nice look, garnish with a sprig of mint. That's it! Enjoy!
Makes 4 servings. Per serving: 110 calories, 0.5 gm fat (3 percent calories from fat), no cholesterol, 4 mg sodium.
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