Is 30-a-week the new 5-a-day?

It's Organic September, and while the month is best known for organic food, it's also a great excuse to talk about something bigger: how the everyday choices we make about diet can play a role in our risk of breast cancer. 

You’ve heard of 5-a-day. It's one of the most repeated pieces of health advice around. But what if we told you there is a more useful idea worth knowing about: 30-a-week. Here's why it might do more for your health than the old classic, and how to make it happen. 

Is 5-a-day outdated? 

The 5-a-day message has been around for decades, and it's done a good job of getting people to eat more fruit and veg. But there's a catch: it says nothing about variety. 

Picture a week where you eat the same five things every single day, say, potatoes, tomatoes, peas, carrots and apples. You'd hit your 5-a-day target every day without fail. Technically, a success. But your gut would be seeing the exact same handful of plants, day in, day out. 

The gut microbiome (a collection of naturally occurring microbes in your gut) is the largest microbiome in the human body and plays a key role in human health. An imbalance in the gut microbiome may increase the risk of breast cancer. A healthy gut microbiome is your secret weapon for better health and more energy! So, we recommend eating a varied diet to help keep your gut balanced. 

And that's the gap 5-a-day doesn't address: it doesn’t ensure that you eat a varied diet. 

What is 30-a-week? 

Instead of 5 pieces of fruit and veg per day, it encourages you to rack up 30 different plant-based foods across a week. This may sound daunting, but it actually includes a much wider variety of foods than 5-a-day as anything that comes from a plant count: fruits, vegetables, wholegrains, legumes, nuts, seeds, herbs, and spices. 

For actual food items, think: lentils, chickpeas, oats, wholemeal bread, blueberries, strawberries, nuts, spices, olive oil, brown rice, almonds, peppers, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, garlic, dark chocolate, the list goes on. 

The concept concept comes from a study which showed us that people who ate the largest variety of foods were found to have the healthiest microbiomes and better health outcomes. 

For a lot of people, this may actually feel more achievable than 5-a-day, not less. That's because it stops being about ‘eating enough’ and starts being about ‘eating differently’. Adding a new herb to a dish, or trying a bean you've never cooked with before, counts toward your 30 with no dramatic diet overhaul required. 

The key message: the diversity of the plants you eat is key. This is because eating lots of different plant foods:  

• promotes a diverse and healthy gut microbiome 
• encourages fibre intake, and 
• gives you a wide range of nutrients, antioxidants, and plant compounds  

...which affects your health positively in a wide range of ways. 

How to eat 30 per week: our top tips. 

• Some plant foods, such as herbs, spices, tea, coffee and olive oil, only count as a quarter of a plant point, as we tend not to eat very much of them.  
• Sneak greens into your meals wherever you can, whether that's stirred into a soup, blended into a smoothie, or added to a curry. It's an easy way to rack up plants! 
• Get creative with toppings on yoghurt, porridge etc. A scattering of nuts, seeds, or mixed fruit is another simple way to add to your daily count. 
• Frozen fruit and veg count just as much as fresh, so keep a stash in the freezer to add to dishes when you need it. 
• Pick up mixes when you’re next at the supermarket! Buying mixed nuts, seeds, beans or frozen berries is an easy way to boost your plant count without any extra effort.  

Pesticides and organic choices. 

Since this is Organic September, it's worth touching on why organic can matter here too.

Pesticides are used in farming to protect crops from pests; however some have been linked to an increased risk of breast cancer. Organic food generally contains less, and fewer, pesticides overall, reducing your exposure to them. 

We appreciate that buying organic food all of the time is not an option for everyone so here are a few practical tips for when you can’t buy organic produce: 

• Washing produce under running water helps 
• Pay attention to the ‘dirty dozen’ list of produce most likely to carry pesticide residue 
• Use a vegetable brush for extra reassurance on things like root veg 

In summary.

If you take one thing from this blog, let it be this: variety matters.  

This Organic September, have fun exploring new beans, herbs, spices and wholegrains along the way and try aiming for 30. It's a powerful step that could help reduce your breast cancer risk - and you’ll hit it before you’ve even realised.

Download our FREE Organic Flavours recipe book to gain inspiration and key information about diet and breast cancer.