Fruit and Vegetable Consumption

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From 2017 to 2018, people aged 2 years and olderconsumed 1.2 cups of fruit and vegetables per 1,000 calories.

Summary graph for Fruit and Vegetable Consumption, Click to see detailed view of graph

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Summary graph for Fruit and Vegetable Consumption, Click to see detailed view of graph

Background

People whose diets are rich in plant foods such as fruits and vegetables have a lower risk of getting cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, stomach, and lung, and some evidence suggests that maintaining a diet rich in plant foods also lowers the risk of cancers of the colon, pancreas, and prostate. This diet also reduces the risk of diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension, helps to reduce calorie intake, and may help to control weight.

To help prevent the aforementioned cancers and other chronic diseases, experts recommend the daily consumption of 2 to 6.5 cups of fruits and vegetables, depending on one’s energy needs. This includes 1 to 2.5 cups of fruits and 1 to 4 cups of vegetables, with special emphasis on dark green and orange vegetables and legumes. There is no evidence that the popular white potato protects against cancer.

Measure

Average daily cup equivalents per 1,000 calories of fruits and vegetables for people aged 2 years and older. This measure includes fruits and vegetables from all sources.

Data Source

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Food Surveys Research Group (Beltsville, MD). Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals 1994-96, 1998.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

The Cancer Trends Progress Report uses NHANES data through 2017-2018. The 2019-2020 cycle was not completed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More information is available at NHANES Questionnaires, Datasets, and Related Documentation.

Healthy People 2030 Target

  • Increase the consumption of fruits by persons aged 2 years and over to 0.56 cup equivalents of fruit per 1,000 calories.
  • Increase the consumption of total vegetables by persons aged 2 years and over to 0.84 cup equivalents of total vegetables per 1,000 calories.

Healthy People 2030 is a set of goals set forth by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Note: Goals are indicated as blue line on Detailed Trend Graphs.

Trends and Most Recent Estimates

Overall Comparison

Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older, 1994-2018 Fruit and Vegetables CombinedClick to see the detailed trend graph for Fruit and Vegetables Combined 1.2 1.2 - 1.3
FruitClick to see the detailed trend graph for Fruit 0.5 0.5 - 0.5
VegetablesClick to see the detailed trend graph for Vegetables 0.7 0.7 - 0.8

Fruit and Vegetables Combined

By Sex
Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by sex, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by sex, 1994-2018 Both SexesClick to see the detailed trend graph for Both Sexes 1.2 1.2 - 1.3
MaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Male 1.1 1.0 - 1.2
FemaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Female 1.4 1.3 - 1.4
By Race/Ethnicity
Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by race/ethnicity, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by race/ethnicity, 1994-2018 All Races/EthnicitiesClick to see the detailed trend graph for All Races 1.2 1.2 - 1.3
Non-Hispanic WhiteClick to see the detailed trend graph for Non-Hispanic White 1.2 1.1 - 1.2
Non-Hispanic BlackClick to see the detailed trend graph for Non-Hispanic Black 1.2 1.1 - 1.3
HispanicClick to see the detailed trend graph for Hispanic 1.5 1.3 - 1.6
By Poverty Income Level
Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by poverty income level, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of fruit and vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by poverty income level, 1994-2018 <200% of Federal Poverty LevelClick to see the detailed trend graph for <200% of Federal Poverty Level 1.2 1.1 - 1.3
>=200% of Federal Poverty LevelClick to see the detailed trend graph for >=200% of Federal Poverty Level 1.3 1.2 - 1.3

Fruit

By Sex
Average cups of fruit consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by sex, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of fruit consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by sex, 1994-2018 Both SexesClick to see the detailed trend graph for Both Sexes 0.5 0.5 - 0.5
MaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Male 0.4 0.4 - 0.5
FemaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Female 0.5 0.5 - 0.6
By Race/Ethnicity
Average cups of fruit consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by race/ethnicity, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of fruit consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by race/ethnicity, 1994-2018 All Races/EthnicitiesClick to see the detailed trend graph for All Races 0.5 0.5 - 0.5
Non-Hispanic WhiteClick to see the detailed trend graph for Non-Hispanic White 0.4 0.4 - 0.5
Non-Hispanic BlackClick to see the detailed trend graph for Non-Hispanic Black 0.5 0.4 - 0.6
HispanicClick to see the detailed trend graph for Hispanic 0.6 0.6 - 0.7
By Poverty Income Level
Average cups of fruit consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by poverty income level, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of fruit consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by poverty income level, 1994-2018 <200% of Federal Poverty LevelClick to see the detailed trend graph for <200% of Federal Poverty Level 0.5 0.4 - 0.5
>=200% of Federal Poverty LevelClick to see the detailed trend graph for >=200% of Federal Poverty Level 0.5 0.5 - 0.5

Vegetables

By Sex
Average cups of vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by sex, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by sex, 1994-2018 Both SexesClick to see the detailed trend graph for Both Sexes 0.7 0.7 - 0.8
MaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Male 0.7 0.6 - 0.7
FemaleClick to see the detailed trend graph for Female 0.8 0.8 - 0.9
By Race/Ethnicity
Average cups of vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by race/ethnicity, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by race/ethnicity, 1994-2018 All Races/EthnicitiesClick to see the detailed trend graph for All Races 0.7 0.7 - 0.8
Non-Hispanic WhiteClick to see the detailed trend graph for Non-Hispanic White 0.7 0.7 - 0.8
Non-Hispanic BlackClick to see the detailed trend graph for Non-Hispanic Black 0.7 0.6 - 0.8
HispanicClick to see the detailed trend graph for Hispanic 0.8 0.8 - 0.9
By Poverty Income Level
Average cups of vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by poverty income level, 1994-2018
Overview Graph Detailed Trend Graphs Most Recent Estimates (2017 to 2018)
Average cups per 1,000 calories 95% Confidence Interval
Thumbnail of graph for Average cups of vegetables consumed per 1,000 calories by individuals aged 2 years and older by poverty income level, 1994-2018 <200% of Federal Poverty LevelClick to see the detailed trend graph for <200% of Federal Poverty Level 0.7 0.7 - 0.8
>=200% of Federal Poverty LevelClick to see the detailed trend graph for >=200% of Federal Poverty Level 0.8 0.7 - 0.8

Related Cancers

Statistical summaries from NCI's SEER Cancer Stat Fact Sheets:

Additional Information

Year Range

1994-2018

Recent Summary Trend Year Range

2013-2018

Recent Summary Trend

Non-Significant Change

Desired Direction

Rising

Summary Tables

Diet and Alcohol