Term: Average Daily Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables - (CCHS Survey Data)
Last Updated: 2010-08-05
Canada's Food Guide recommends that children should eat 4-6 servings of fruits or vegetables daily, and teenagers and adults should eat 7-8 servings of fruits or vegetables daily as part of a healthy diet. One serving means ½ cup of fresh, frozen or canned fruits or vegetables, 1 piece of fruit or ½ cup of fruit juice. Canada's Food Guide states that the benefits to eating well include better overall health, looking and feeling better, lower risk of disease, more energy, a healthy body weight, and stronger muscles and bones.
In the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), the total daily consumption of fruits and vegetables is a derived variable that indicates the total number of times per day the respondent eats fruits and vegetables (ie, not the number of servings eaten). Respondents are asked a series of questions regarding their dietary practices, like "How often do you usually eat potatoes, not including French fries, fried potatoes, or potato chips?" and the total daily consumption of fruits and vegetables is determined based on the respondent's answers. Possible responses include less than 5 times/servings per day, 5 to 10 times/servings per day, mores than 10 times/servings per day or not stated. This variable is calculated for all respondents. Respondents were grouped into two categories: those eating fruits and vegetables "Less than 5 times/servings per day" or "5 or more times per day" based on their responses.