Adult consumption of fruit and vegetables and fat related practices by meal and day.

Abstract

Although national nutrition guidelines encourage adults to eat five to nine servings of fruit and vegetables per day, ~ current adult fruit and vegetable consumption has been estimated at only 3.5 servings per day. 2 Knowing patterns in food consumption by meal and day of week may provide guidance on how better to target nutrition education programs. In a national survey, among adults, the greatest percentage of calories were consumed at dinner (46.6%), followed by lunch (24.0%), breakfast (17.3%), or other times (12.0%).~ Intakes of energy, tein, fat, and carbohydrate tended to be greater on weekends than on weekdays. 4 From a behavioral intervention perspective, however, it is important to focus on servings of foods within food groups. ] Fat intake can also be conceived as food behaviors. Fat consumption is a composite of choosing high foods, adding to foods, and preparing foods in (e.g., frying). Fat intake can be lowered by low-fat practices, e.g., removing the skin from chicken and selecting light or low fat options. Kristal