Are fruit and veg good for me?

Fruit juice and smoothies, both home-made and bought (even if labelled ‘no added sugar’), can contain as much or more sugar as a fizzy drink. Try to avoid them completely. Limit high-sugar tropical fruits such as bananas, pineapples and mangos, and dried fruit such as raisins.

The best fruits to eat are those with low sugar content such as berries, apples, pears, peaches and tangerines. Meanwhile, although vegetables contain much less sugar than fruit they differ greatly in the amount of starchy carbohydrates they contain and fall into the following four broad categories:

‘FRUIT’ VEGETABLES include tomatoes, cucumbers and red and green peppers, have low sugar content and can be eaten freely.

LEAFY VEGETABLES include broccoli, cabbage, spinach, lettuce and cauliflower.

They are rich in fibre and Vitamin C, and low in sugar and starch, so can be eaten freely.

ROOT VEGETABLES such as potatoes, carrots, turnips, parsnips and beetroots and are high in starchy carbohydrate, so eat them in moderation.

Some root veg, such as onions, contain less carbohydrate.

LEGUMES include French beans, runner beans and sugar-snap peas.

Their carbohydrate content varies considerably – for instance, garden peas are relatively low whereas chickpeas contain about 50 per cent carbohydrate and are best avoided.