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Important Facts for Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Among Adults Ages 18+

Definition

The percentage of survey respondents aged 18 and older who reported consuming five or more daily servings of fruits and vegetables (including legumes).

Numerator

The number of survey respondents who reported consuming at least five daily servings of fruits and vegetables (including legumes).

Denominator

The total number of survey respondents.

Why Is This Important?

Fruits and vegetables contain essential vitamins, minerals, fiber and other nutrients that may help prevent many chronic diseases. Compared with people who consume a diet with only small amounts of fruits and vegetables, those who eat more generous amounts as part of a healthful diet are likely to have reduced risk of chronic diseases, including stroke and perhaps other cardiovascular diseases, and certain cancers. Fruits and vegetables also help people to achieve and maintain a healthy weight, because they are relatively low in energy density.

Other Objectives

Healthy New Jersey 2010 Objective 3D-1: Increase the percentage of persons aged 18 and over eating at least five daily servings of fruits and vegetables (including legumes) to 35%. Healthy New Jersey 2020 Objective NF2-a: Increase the proportion of adults aged 18 years and older consuming five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day.

How Are We Doing?

The percentage of New Jersey adults consuming 5 or more daily servings of fruits and vegetables has slightly improved from 27% in 1996 to 26% in 2009. Women (30%) in the state are more likely to consume the recommended daily servings than men (25%). Among racial/ethnic groups, Asians (38%) consume the most fruits and vegetables compared to Whites (26%), Blacks (26%) and Hispanics (24%).

What Is Being Done?

The New Jersey Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (NPAO) Program within the NJDHSS Office of Nutrition and Fitness coordinates efforts to work with communities to develop, implement, and evaluate interventions that address behaviors related to increasing physical activity, breastfeeding initiation and duration, and the consumption of fruits and vegetables, and to decreasing the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and high-energy-dense foods, and to decrease television viewing. More information on the national NPAO Program may be found online at http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/index.html.

Health Program Information

Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity Program (NPAO), Office of Nutrition and Fitness, Family Health Services, New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, 50 East State Street, Trenton, New Jersey.
The information provided above is from the Department of Health's NJSHAD web site (https://nj.gov/health/shad). The information published on this website may be reproduced without permission. Please use the following citation: " Retrieved Thu, 28 March 2024 19:05:52 from Department of Health, New Jersey State Health Assessment Data Web site: https://nj.gov/health/shad ".

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