Fruits and Veggies: What’s Enough?

Most of us, at some point during school, learned about the food pyramid in a health or science class. We were taught that breads, pasta, and cereal were the base of the pyramid, and should make up around 40% of our diets. The next level of the pyramid was fruits and vegetables at around 35% of our diet, but is this still relevant today? How many fruits and veggies should you really be incorporating into your diet?

There are many arguments and diets out there that will have you either load up completely on fruits and veggies or stay away from them almost completely. So, how do you find that true balance of what is enough?

According to the American Heart Association, a 2,000-calorie diet should include 4-5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Based on the suggested serving sizes for each category (fresh, frozen, and canned), this only amounts to around 20% of your diet. This is about half of what the food pyramid suggests. While for some, eating fruits and veggies is a chore worse than laundry or mowing the grass, others might love the excuse to eat as many sweet berries and crunchy carrots that they can. This brings us back to the question: what is enough? There are diet plans and others that will tell you that you can eat as many fruits and vegetables as you want, but according to Science Daily, there IS such a thing as too much “healthy food”.

In the long run, there is not a “one size fits all” goal when it comes to fruits and vegetables. While ideally, you should be taking in 4-5 servings of both fruits and vegetables daily, some people’s needs might vary. If you are trying to stay away from high carbs, you may not want to indulge in too many high starch and sugar foods like potatoes, apples, and bananas. Maybe you are trying to get a little more fiber in your diet, so including an extra cup of spinach in your lunchtime salad will not hurt you.

If you are unsure of what is “enough” for you, there are tools to figure that out. Perhaps speaking with a registered dietician is a route that would help you decide what is the appropriate amount for your lifestyle. As we have established, everyone’s needs are different, and sometimes one approach that might work for your best friend or spouse, might not work for you. Make sure you listen to your own body feed yourself that good stuff that will keep you going.