Compare these 2 meals
According to MRCA Information Services - a leading authority on Americans' eating trends, the average American suffers from a fruit and vegetable deficit ranging from 219 to 1,629 servings per year. That's enough to fill 4 shopping carts.

It's easy to reduce your fruit and vegetable deficit. Here's an example:
These photos compare a fruit and vegetable-rich meal with a fruit and vegetable-poor meal. 

The following is an analysis of the healthy differences between these two meals. Remember, the fruit and vegetable-rich meal is far lower in fat, far richer in fiber and antioxidants, and actually costs almost $1 less than the fruit and vegetable-poor meal.


NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS

Fruit and Vegetable-Poor Menu vs. Fruit & Vegetable-Rich Menu
Research conducted by Produce for Better Health Foundation, Feb/99


MENUS           

Menu One: Fruit and Vegetable-Poor

Main Plate
8 ozs. sirloin steak 
1 cup cooked white rice with pat of butter 
1/2 cup broccoli with pat of butter 

Salad Plate 
1 cup Romaine lettuce 
1/2 cup bacon, cheddar cheese
1 1/2 tbsps. low-fat salad dressing   

Drink
8 ozs. cola 

Dessert 
1 slice white cake with frosting 
1/2 cup vanilla ice cream 

      

Menu Two: Fruit and Vegetable-Rich

Main Plate
3 ozs. sirloin steak
1 cup cooked brown rice with 1 tsp. soy sauce
1 1/2 cups broccoli, red pepper, carrots
                            

Salad Plate
1 cup Romaine lettuce
1 cup carrots, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers
1 1/2 tbsps. low-fat salad dressing

Drink
8 ozs. skim milk

Dessert
1 1/2 cups cantaloupe, bananas, grapes, apples, oranges
1/2 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt


CHANGES & SUBSTITUTIONS TO MENU TWO

* Seven additional servings of fruits and vegetables were added
* The amount of sirloin steak was decreased from 8 ozs. to 3 ozs.
* Brown rice was substituted for white rice
* No additional butter or other fat was used in stir-fry
* Salad toppings of bacon and cheese were replaced by vegetables
* Skim milk replaced cola
* Low-fat vanilla yogurt replaced vanilla ice cream

MEAL COMPARISON OVERVIEW
Research conducted by Produce for Better Health Foundation, Feb/99

Cost**
Think produce costs more? The fruit and vegetable-rich menu costs almost $1.00 less than the fruit and vegetable-poor menu. 


Calories
The fruit and vegetable fruit and vegetable-poor menu has more than twice the calories as the fruit and vegetable-rich menu (1504 calories vs. 740 calories)

Fat
The fruit and vegetable-poor menu has four times the amount of total fat as the fruit and vegetable- rich menu (65g vs. 16g), and six times the amount of saturated fat (27g vs. 4.4g).

The fruit and vegetable-poor menu packs 65 grams of total fat-that's your total fat allowance for the entire day, and 27 grams of saturated fat-that's your total saturated fat allowance for almost a day and a half; the fruit and vegetable- rich menu only uses up less than a quarter of your daily allowance for both total and saturated fat.

Fiber
The fruit and vegetable- rich menu has three times the amount of fiber as the fruit and vegetable-poor menu-fulfilling one half of your daily fiber recommendation in one meal.

Antioxidants
It's easy to see the benefit of the fruit and vegetable- rich menu when you realize it has more than seven times the amount of the powerful antioxidant vitamin A as compared to the fruit and vegetable-poor menu (369% daily value vs. 51% daily value).

The fruit and vegetable- rich menu also has almost three times the amount of antioxidant vitamin C as compared to the fruit and vegetable-poor menu (320% daily value vs. 119% daily value), and three times the amount of bone-building vitamin D as the fruit and vegetable-poor menu (25% daily value vs. 8% daily value).

Variety
Variety and color in the fruit and vegetable- rich menu-two quick tips to healthful eating. In the fruit and vegetable- rich menu, you get 18 different foods, while you only get 11 different foods in the fruit and vegetable-poor menu.


5 A Day
It's easy to reach your goal to eat 5 or more servings everyday, when eating meals like the fruit and vegetable- rich menu-it's packed with nine servings of fruits and vegetable, whereas the fruit and vegetable-poor menu only has two servings of vegetables and no servings of fruit.

** The total cost of the fruit and vegetable-poor menu is $4.32 per person, whereas fruit and vegetable- rich menu the costs only $3.38 per person. The cost analysis was done based on the prices in a Boston-metropolitan area grocery store: actual costs may vary depending on geographic location. The cost analysis was done using supermarket brand (generic) products when available. The cost analysis was done based on the amount of food consumed per person per menu, rather than the lowest quantity of food available for purchase (e.g. 1/4 of an orange, rather than a whole orange).