Would you eat vegetable scraps?

By throwing away fruit and vegetable scraps like peel and stalks, people are missing out on some important health benefits, researchers say.

Scientists from King's College London looked at fruit and vegetables and measured the amount of fibre in their stalks, rinds and peel.

Fibre has an important role in keeping people healthy, but the majority of children and adults don't get enough.

The researchers hope their study will encourage people to eat the whole of the fruit and vegetable where possible.

The researchers looked at 12 raw or uncooked fruit and vegetables.

These included beetroot, broccoli, butternut squash, pineapple, watermelon and kiwi fruit.

They found the bits that many people would throw away contained more fibre than the parts people usually eat.

This is because fibre is usually more concentrated in the outer layers of fruits and vegetables.

For example they found watermelon rind contained 2.10g of fibre per 100g which is about the same fibre as there is in a slice of wholemeal bread

Butternut squash skin and seeds contained 9.25g per 100g, nearly as much fibre as a bowl of bran flakes

Pineapple skin and core contained five times more fibre than the flesh.

Dr Rachel Gibson, who led the research said the findings suggested people are throwing away a large amount of fibre.

Fibre is a word used to describe certain carbohydrates found naturally in the plants that we eat.

Fibre is found in fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, nuts, seeds.

There are two types of fibre - soluble fibre and insoluble fibre and it is important to have a balance of both.

Soluble fibre includes oats, root vegetables, apples and bananas while insoluble fibre is wholegrain cereals, potatoes with their skins on and leafy vegetables.

Fibre is important because it keeps your digestive system moving, making it easier to go to the toilet regularly.

It keeps your gut, the gastrointestinal system - which includes your stomach, colon and intestines - healthy.

Because it slows down how fast your stomach empties, it can keep you feeling fuller for longer.

King College London, where the researchers are based, has even been testing their research on staff and students.

Meals were developed to include the peel, rinds and parts not usually eaten, such as banana skin curry.

These 29 Root-to-Tip recipes were offered alongside other dishes in the university canteen.

Clare Thornton-Wood is a registered dietician and spokesperson for the British Dietetic Association, she told Newsround she thought it was a great idea.

"Children do need less fibre than adults but we know the majority of children are not getting nearly enough so this is a really good way of increasing it."

Figures released last year from the government found most children and adults were not eating the recommended amount of fibre.

She says as long as everything is washed properly, there are lots of ways children and adults could try this at home.

A lot of children might not want to eat a whole kiwi with the skin on but "slice it thinly and you make sure it's ripe you hardly notice. You can use it smoothies and blitz it down," suggests.

Another way is making crisps with root vegetable peelings, "just put them in the oven with a bit of oil".

Pumpkin can also be sliced into crescents and roasted in the oven and the skin will go all soft.

Of course some things are waste products for a reason, the British Nutrition Foundation says to avoid green potatoes and rhubarb leaves which have toxic compounds.

And tough stalks and seeds may not be suitable for very young children.

Would you eat vegetable peelings and fruit rinds? Let us know in the comments below.