Worried you’re not getting enough fruits and vegetables into your diet? The good news – and bad – is that you have plenty of company. A new federal health study shows only one in 10 Americans are consuming the recommended five servings a day of healthy fruits and veggies.
The most recent edition of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults consume about two cups of fruit per day, and two to three cups of vegetables. But the vast majority of Americans are not even close to hitting those goals, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
According to the report, nearly 88 percent of Americans are not meeting the standard for fruit, more than 90 percent fall short of the vegetable guideline.
The average American consumes just one serving of fruit per day and less than two servings of vegetables.
The numbers vary by state, with people in Washington, D.C. eating the most fruit (15.5 percent meeting the guidelines) and Alaska consumes more vegetables than any other state (with 12 percent hitting the federal standard).
By contrast, just 7.3 percent of West Virginians are eating enough fruit and 5.8 percent the recommended servings of vegetables.
Overall, women eat more produce than men, and young adults eat fewer fruits and vegetables than other age groups, the CDC reports.
Health experts note plant-based diets have been shown to reduce the risk for obesity, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers.