LOST IN TRANSLATION

People who eat more fruits and vegetables have a lower risk of heart disease, stroke, and cancers of the mouth, throat and esophagus. Researchers have compared the diets of people who get those diseases with the diets of people who don’t get those diseases to know this to be true. Furthermore, people that decide to eat more fruits and vegetables weigh less and have less hypertension than people who don’t eat fruits and vegetables.

In all these studies, researchers are talking about fruits and vegetables that are “mainly unprocessed or minimally processed,” says Eric Hentges, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion. Fruit juice is counted as a fruit, but juice-sweetened cookies and crackers or pasta made with dehydrated vegetables are not counted as servings of fruits and vegetables. That is because something is always lost when produce is processed… So when food processors try to convince consumers that they can get their servings without reaching into the fruit and vegetable bins they are being misleading.

Americans should eat 5-13 servings of fruits and vegetables (combined) every day, say the U.S, Dietary Guidelines. That may seem like a lot, but a serving isn’t that much. It is a piece of fruit, ½ cup of cut-up veggies or fruit (a pile the size of a tennis ball), or 1 cup of raw, leafy greens.

Fiber and bulk-Whole fruits and vegetables are recommended over juice. Therefore, keep juice at ½ cup/day and make sure it is 100% juice, not juice drink. The fiber in whole fruits and vegetables keeps our colon healthy. Most of the fiber in fruit is lost when it is turned into juice. For example, a small apple has about 3 grams of fiber. It takes 18 cups of apple juice to get that much fiber. It takes 6 cups of orange juice to reach that 3 grams. When companies add “fruit” to processed foods such as snack bars, candy or desserts they are adding pureed fruit. All the fiber, potassium and vitamin C have been removed so those foods aren’t equal to servings of fruit even if the product claims it is.

Phytochemicals-Produce contains antioxidant phytochemicals that keep our immune system healthy. When vegetable “powders” are added to chips, pasta, and crackers there is cause for skepticism. The notion that a powder-even if it has been sprayed with added vitamins- is equal to the real thing is a stretch. For example, a certain Baked Veggie Crisp contains “1/2 serving of real vegetables in every ounce” says the package. These Crisps have more corn oil, modified corn starch, oat flour, sugar and maltodextrin than anything else. Check out the list of ingredients to see for yourself. That is why the 24 crisps that it would take to equal “a serving of vegetables” have 260 calories (instead of 30 calories from a serving of a real vegetable) and 380 mgs of sodium, versus zero sodium in most fresh vegetables.

Need Ideas for Improving Your Fruit and Vegetable Intake?

• Make fruit smoothies with fresh or frozen pieces of fruit and milk in the blender. Better yet, buy a small blender called a “Magic Bullet” that lets you drink the smoothie right out of the cup you use to blend it in. EASY.
• Buy the bags of frozen vegetables that can be microwaved in their original bag. EASY.
• Add extra canned vegetables to canned soups before heating. EASY.
• Buy already portion-packed fresh carrots for snacks and lunches. EASY.
• Buy already cut up fruits vegetable trays in the deli or produce area. EASY.
• Make a salad-to-go from the salad bar at the grocery store. EASY.
• Buy pre-washed mixed greens in ready-to-go bags. EASY.