Evaluation of Intakes of Fruits and Vegetables among Foreign‐Born Chinese Immigrants

Abstract

The purposes of this study were to assess the average daily intakes of fruits and vegetables (IFV) of Chinese immigrants comparing to the USDA recommendations for American; and to evaluate the influence of acculturation on IFV in Chinese immigrants. Foreign‐born Chinese immigrants were invited by emails to participate an online survey, which assess their sociodemographic, acculturation, and dietary intake characteristics. The questionnaires assessing IFV was adopted from a validated instrument developed by the National Cancer Institute. A total of 134 Chinese immigrants responded to the invitation, although only 102 of them qualified and completed the survey. The average daily intakes of fruits were 1.21 cups; while the average intakes of vegetables were 1.93 cups. Thus the average daily IFV were 3.14 cups. There was no significant difference in the intakes of fruits and/or vegetables between male and female subjects. We failed to find significant difference in the intakes of fruits and/or vegetables between three age groups (ages 19–30, 31–40, and 41–50). However, the intakes of vegetable and IFV depended on the years‐of‐living in US. The longer the immigrants stayed in US, the greater their intakes of vegetables and total IFV were. The level of education didn't seem to have an impact on the intakes of fruits and/or vegetables. According to USDA, the recommended daily intakes of fruits and vegetables should be two cups and two and half cups, respectively. Based on our survey, Chinese immigrants did not meet the recommendations, especially those that just migrated to this country.