Fibre

Make the most of the fibre in your vegetables. Fibre keeps our digestive system healthy, helps us keep a healthy body weight and decreases the risk of heart disease and cancer.

All vegetables contain some fibre, some more than others. Vegetables that are very high in fibre are broad beans, peas, spinach, watercress, green beans, sweet corn, silver beet, cabbage, butter beans, broccoli and Brussels sprouts.

Carrots, parsnips, turnips, potatoes and kumara have a special type of fibre in their skins so try scrubbing instead of peeling these vegetables. Potatoes and kumara baked in their jackets are delicious and healthier for you.

Make sure that vegetables are prepared and cooked the right way to preserve the valuable nutrients and fibre in them. Vegetables that belong to the cabbage family (cabbage, cauliflower, turnips, swedes and Brussels sprouts) contain compounds that may be particularly good at protecting us against cancer.