DAILY intake of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables was as sociated with a lower risk of death related to cancer, cardiovascular disease, or respiratory disease.
Starchy vegetables and fruit juices, however, did not appear to contribute to the reduction in risk.
For many decades, nutritionists have recommended a balanced diet to provide the body with the proper nutrients to stay healthy.
The core components of this diet include vegetables, fruits, grains, proteins, and dairy.
A recent study by researchers at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, MA, provides further evidence for current dietary guidelines and expands on them, finding that consuming at least 2 fruit and 3 vegetable servings on a daily basis may lower the risk of both disease-related death and death from all causes.
The study appears in Circulation, a scientific journal of the American Heart Association (AHA).
“While groups like the American Heart Association recommend 4–5 servings each of fruits and vegetables daily, consumers likely get inconsistent messages about […] the recommended amount and which foods to include and avoid,” says Dr. Dong D. Wang, M.D., Sc.D., an epidemiologist and nutritionist at Harvard Medical School and lead author of the study.
The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture published their recommendations in the form of the 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
According to this set of guidelines, half of the plate for every meal should contain fruits and vegetables.
However, the guidelines also note that more than 80% of people in the United States do not meet this recommendation and should aim to increase their consumption of nutrient-dense foods.
The researchers collected self-reported dietary information from two large cohort studies: the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and the Health Professionals’ Follow-up Study (HPFS).
The NHS cohort included registered female nurses between the ages of 30 and 55 years, while the HPFS cohort included males aged 40–75 years with occupations in the health profession.
