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It can often be difficult to factor fruit into your diet, especially if you are a determined junk food addict. However, you do need to eat a wide range of fresh fruit if you want to live a full, healthy life.

Fortunately there are lots of innovative ways to introduce some fruity fun into your life.

Blend it up

If you own a blender and it doesnt have to be a top-of-the-range model you can start making delicious smoothies straight away.

Dont be afraid to experiment with the selection of fruits and berries in your smoothies. A combination of bananas, a mango and a chopped apple makes a wonderful and nutritious banana smoothie, while blackberries, blueberries and strawberries can also be blended together to make a tasty mixed berry drink.

The choice really is yours. Making smoothies is a great way to introduce healthier foods to your diet, because you can decide which ingredients suit your tastes. If you have any specific health complaints (for example, cranberries can ease the symptoms of cystitis), you can easily blend the appropriate fruits into your smoothie for an extra-healthy boost.

Cooking to keep the goodness in

In the case of many fruits and vegetables, cooking destroys vital nutrients. However, apples and pears become easier to digest if you roast them gently in the oven. Sprinkle on a little water to help the cooking process, and dust them with cinnamon to create a deliciously sweet snack.

Other fruits that can be cooked include pineapples and even strawberries. Stuck on a bamboo kebab skewer and lightly grilled, these make a wonderful warm dessert, especially when served with a little natural yoghurt.

When youre heating fruits, do remember not to cook them to death, as this will destroy many of the enzymes that help keep your body healthy. You should also make sure you include a mixture of cooked and raw fruits in your diet.

How fruit helps

A diet that includes a wide selection of fruits is very important if your body is to function properly. Fresh and dried fruits can ease the symptoms of constipation, high blood pressure, osteoporosis and problems with memory and concentration.

As fruits are a valuable source of natural sugars, they also help to keep your energy levels stable and constant throughout the day, thereby promoting healthy sleep and combating insomnia.

Berries are particularly high in antioxidants and can help the body fight off a number of eye problems. For example, blepharitis is an inflammation of the eyelids which can be eased by eating raspberries and drinking tea made from raspberry leaves.

If you want to get rid of unsightly dark circles under the eyes, cranberries, blackberries and blueberries can all improve liver function and make these circles fade.

So whether you blend your favourite fruits together to make a sumptuous smoothie or sprinkle a few strawberries on to your porridge for a brilliant breakfast, the number of ways to get fruit into your diet is limited only by your imagination.