According to the Centers for Disease and Control (CDC), Americans are not eating enough fruits and vegetables. In a report released by the agency on Tuesday, the CDC said that no State is meeting objectives that aim for at least 75 percent of residents to eat two or more servings of fruit each day and and for at least 50 percent of residents to eat three or more servings of vegetables daily.

 

The "State Indicator Report on Fruits and Vegetables, 2009" found that only 33 percent of adults and 32 percent of adolescents eat enough fruit per day and only 27 percent of adults and 13 percent of adolescents eat enough vegetables. The report is somewhat alarming given that diets high in fruits and vegetables is critical for child growth and development and given its importance in preventing and fighting diseases like cancer and heart disease.

 

The findings are based on data collected on a state by state basis via the "Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System" for adults and the "Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System" for adolescents. Both systems involve surveying a sample of adults and adolescents and asking them several health related questions.

 

The report included a break-down of consumption patterns by States. The states with the lowest rates of produce consumption included Oklahoma, Mississippi, Alabama, and South Carolina within which less than 10 percent of adults consumed enough produce. Although all States fell below the recommended levels, the States with the highest rates of adult consumption of produce (where more than 35% of adults consumed the recommended amounts) included California, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Florida, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Connecticut, Washington DC, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Vermont.

 

According to the CDC report, some of the reasons for the low rates of consumption include the lack of full service grocery stores in many rural and inter-city areas, the lack of small food stores that stock produce, and the lack of healthy-food options in schools. To combat these issues the CDC recommends (among other things) that States work on developing better "Food System Supports" in which factors involved in getting fruits and vegetables from farms to consumers is encouraged. According to the CDC, such systems are generally fostered by state-level food policy councils of which only 20 now exist nationwide.

 

 

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