As 2017 approaches, inspiration is at hand for Hunter residents looking to put down the booze and stock up on beverages that don’t fuel a hangover.

Cancer Council NSW nutrition program Eat It To Beat It works with parents to help families add more fruit and vegetables to the household diet for better health and cancer prevention.

The program has already helped inspire more than 1470 Hunter parents in 2016, through free sessions and workshops.

Hunter Nutrition Project Officer Clare Murphy said celebrating the New Year and making a resolution to pick up healthy habits was a great way to start 2017.

Drinks, which so often featured in celebrations, offered a great starting point.

“Fruit and veg mocktails can add great liquid punch to a New Year’s party, while fruit and veg smoothies offer a great pick-me-up next morning,” Miss Murphy said.

“It’s also a quick and easy way to help reach the recommended daily intake of two serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables.”

Miss Murphy said New Year was also a great time to think about lifestyle choices, which affected cancer risk.
In Australia approximately 37,000 or one third of cancer cases each year are preventable.

Evidence now shows that nearly as many cancer cases are caused by a combination of the following lifestyle choices as smoking: drinking too much alcohol; being overweight; a lack of physical activity; eating too much red and processed meat; and not eating enough fruit and vegetables.

For New Year’s fruit and vegetable beverage inspiration, try these recipes:

Mocktail: juice or blend your favourite combination of fruits (mixed berries, orange and pineapple, or grapes) and mix with a sparkling water or milk base, along with cubed or crushed ice.

Frozen fruit pieces make a great garnish too.

Smoothie: in a blender combine two large handfuls of baby spinach, one banana, five strawberries, one mandarin or small orange, ½ cup water and ice cubes.

For information and ideas: eatittobeatit.com.au or pinterest.com/cancercouncil/easy-fruit-veg