VEGETABLES, ARE WE REMEMBERING

By 20l0 U.S. health officials want 75 percent of Americans to eat two fruits a day and 50 percent to eat three vegetables a day. Since 1994 the percentage of Americans meeting this goal has held steady at about 27 percent. Caucasians, college graduates, older adults and people with higher incomes were more likely to meet the goals for fruit and vegetable consumption, according to an analysis of survey data that was published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine.

Given the increasing amount of publicity devoted to the importance of diet to health, it seems surprising that this information has had such little effect upon behaviour. Researchers at the Center for Disease Control speculate that we are bombarded with information, much of it conflicting. They also believe that our desire for convenience in food preparation is a contributing factor to our ignoring our veggies.