It’s a sad day when your state gets a “thumbs up” for being the only state in the country where a whopping 12 percent of adult inhabitants eat enough vegetables not to die. Way to go, Alaska!
Even though a recommended daily dose of veggies is only 2 to 3 cups, a scant 9 percent of Americans meet that requirement, a new study by the Centers for Disease Control finds. That percentage rises to 12 percent when it comes to fruit (1.5 to 2 cups). But when you compare genders, 15 percent of women eat enough fruit compared to 9 percent of men. The numbers are a little lower than veggies: nearly 11 percent of women eat the proper amount of vegetables compared to 7.6 percent of guys.
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But those are still terrible numbers. Dr. Seung Hee Lee Kwan, who led the study, is embarrassed — for all of us.
This report highlights that very few Americans eat the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables every day, putting them at risk for chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease. As a result, we’re missing out on the essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber that fruits and vegetables provide.
Yep. We’re pretty much all going to die at an early age.
The worse offenders were young adults. The study found that those between the ages of 18–30 years ate the least amount of fruits and vegetables (9.2% and 6.7%, respectively).
And not surprisingly, those with the lowest income ate the least amount of fresh produce.
Head over to the study to see the complete breakdown of numbers.
Seven of the top 10 leading causes of death in the US stem from chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer and obesity. What we’ve been told since childhood still rings true: eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables can help reduce the risk of many of these illnesses.
