Healthy without veggies + fruits??

Graelwyn75

I see quite a few people on Mfp with daily diaries totally lacking in fruits and vegetables, and am just curious as to whether people can maintain decent health and nutrients without those things?

I, personally, eat a kg of veggies and fruits a day, and cannot imagine not having them on a daily basis.

And do you think it is an upbringing without being given these foods that causes people to forego them, or an unwillingness to try them and find a way to work them into diet?

Carnivor0us

Up until recently, I did not bother to include fruits or vegetables in my diet unless I wanted something sweet.

It was just too much of a pain in the *kitten* to prepare vegetables I liked.

DCruz83

I try to add fruits and veggies here and there but I'm definitely not having them all the time. Yes it's possible to lose weight, I did it before and don't see why I couldn't do it again. My issue is not so much lack of time or anything but I'm somewhat picky and I'm not a salad person so I find it hard to integrate them into my diet.

grimendale

You can lose weight without them, but the issue is whether you can get all of your vitamins and minerals without them. A lot of people have decided they don't like veggies without really giving them a try. Often, they didn't like a particular mean of preparing them. I used to be a "no veggies" person, but when I decided to stop eating meat, I was forced to reconsider that position. There are still some I can't stand (beets and brussel sprouts spring to mind), but overall, I am surprised at the things I eat now that I would never have considered before.

TruckersWifeTruckersLife

i take vitamin tablets daily to supplement the times that i dont have veggies i must admit when my hubby is away every 2nd night i dont cook at all its help yourself night

bd12310007

I think alot of people just don't think they count so they don't log them.

ripemango

The reason is that this site is about losing weight, not necessarily about being healthy. You can eat at a caloric deficit just having snickers all day long and lose weight.

I personally love all kinds of veggies and fruit, but I think if some1 isn't inclined toward having those things in their diet it is probably better than they be at a healthy weight w a poor diet vs an unhealthy weight w a poor diet.

moonshine_betty

I think alot of people just don't think they count so they don't log them.

I think this may be true for some people...it's partially true for me. I log my fruit but not veggies. For one thing it's just too hard as I rarely eat veggies as a side; they're almost always integrated into whatever dish I cook so it's too tedious to figure out precisely how much is in each serving. Also, you'd have to eat a fairly hefty portion of veggies to rack up significant calories so for me, I see no point in the extra headache of logging yet another thing.

Ozzyopolis

I would be in trouble without them as that's all I eat save for an occasional taco shell or slice of millet bread! XD

stcar

I do not eat a lot of fruits or veggies and never have. I have recently been trying to force myself to try new things...but it's hard after a lifetime of not eating certain things. With that being said, I have zero health issues and haven't had a cold in well over a year. Basically, I'm healthier than most people I know. I could just be lucky though!

anazombee

I hardly ate veggies or fruits when I was little, poor couldn't really afford them every now and then I would find apples/bananas and a can of mixed vegetables around the house.

Now that I am older and buying my own food I eat a lot more vegetables, but not many fruits I include them here and there but not very much.

I still eat enough to get a balanced diet, you don't need giant servings or to only eat fruits and veg to reach your nutritional goals.

LAW_714

I guess I'm curious. If you don't eat fruit and vegetables what do you eat? Is it just meat, bread, and pasta? Pasta and cheese? Meat and cheese?

andijean31

I guess I'm curious. If you don't eat fruit and vegetables what do you eat? Is it just meat, bread, and pasta? Pasta and cheese? Meat and cheese?

Dairy, grains, and meat.

ClareWantsProgress

My husband RARELY eats fruits or vegetables. Green beans, carrots, and corn are the only 3 veggies he will touch, no matter how I prepare them - and even those he probably only gets one serving a week.

As far as fruit, he will eat bananas and grapes. That is it. Also only once or twice a week.

Yes, it drives me crazy. Yes, he does take a multi-vitamin. At 51 he is in awesome shape, lifts weights and does cardio on alternate days, and helps build Habitat Houses where he puts the "kids" half his age to shame with his physical ability.

What does he eat? Lean beef, chicken, cheese, eggs, wheat bread, protein shakes, skim milk, cereal. That's the bulk of his diet.

Annoying? You bet, but his physicals always come out in fine shape.

Matt_Wild

Veg I consider a must, fruit, not so much.

LAW_714

Maybe it does go back to what you grew up eating and are used to? What we know is what we default to?

I grew up in a family where three vegetables were considered to be a meal. (Meat was desired but optional)

My paternal grandfather was a farmer and my maternal grandfather had a 2 acre vegetable garden. My mother was (and still is for that matter) convinced that meals should have at least one green thing, one yellow/orange/red/etc. thing, and there should never more than one white thing (pasta, bread, rice, white potatoes fall under the heading of 'white'). Having grown up with that concept, I find that all these years later this still seems to be my default thought process when doing any "proper" meal planning.

I went on Atkins once many years ago. Giving up the bread and pasta wasn't difficult. But, boy, did I miss the vegetables! (I know now that I wasn't doing Atkins properly, but I didn't realize that at the time. I lost weight but could not sustain that diet. It seemed relentlessly meat-oriented to me and I wanted variety back).

Basically, I guess it does perhaps relate to our personal histories for most of us.

So I guess I may be doomed to color coordinate meals for life.

lyndausvi

I grew up in a family that dinner was meat, potato and one of the following veggies: corn, peas, asparagus, green beans. and sometimes a lima bean. Veggies were always frozen and thrown in to a pot of boiling water for like 20 minutes. The only lettuce we saw was iceberg for BTL's. Never saw spinach or anything like that every. Fruits rarely entered the house. Although sometimes an apple or box of raisins might sneak in. Oh and an occasional tomato for the BLT.

I'm 43 and just recently started having larger quantities of veggies. I find now I'm craving fresh veggies I try and have a large salad 5-6 days a week (either dinner or lunch). Discovering fresh veggies, learning what veggies I like and how to cook them properly as made a big difference.

Fruits? I have either an apple or banana everyday. I'm trying to add more, but I'm not a fan of melons or citrus fruits. Berries I'm on the fence, I will eat them, but not often. I'm eating a mango right now. I love tomatos and avocados so I guess I'm eating more fruit than I thought.


Before making sure veggies are a larger part of my diet I would eat meat (mostly poultry), dairy, bread and pasta.

Confuzzled4ever

I love them.. i dont' eat a lot of grains.. that's something i have to think about. I just dont' want bread or pasta or rice.. but put an apple in front of me and my mouth starts watering.

I suppose it's possible to eat healhty without them.. but it's much easier with them. You get a lot of minerals and nutrients from them, they are low in calories, have almost no fat, no cholestrol, high fiber etc.. so many good reasons to eat fruits adn veggies.

Ha.. I just ate a huge salad!! (and logged every bit of it!)

people who don't think they count.. are wrong.. there are calories in them.. adn they do add up!

elvensnow

I don't eat a ton of veggies, and almost never eat them on their own (always either cooked into a dish somehow or something like that). Not that I hate them or anything. But my husband hates veggies so it's hard for me to make small enough servings just for me. And then when you factor in spoilage and things like that, I feel half the time it's a waste of money to buy veggies when you absolutely don't need them to survive (or lose weight).

Also just something else interesting -- people who like vegetables usually can't understand people not eating them. But there is a lot of evidence to suggest that your predisposition to vegetables is a genetic thing. Example here:

http://www.mindthesciencegap.org/2013/04/05/hate-vegetables-blame-it-on-your-supertaste-gene/

Basically some people just hate vegetables and always will. And I don't think judging them "unhealthy" because of it makes sense at all. Humans are the epitome of extreme omnivores and we can live long and prosper without them.

wiltl

I don't eat fruit, expect for something like raisins or craisins. I have a texture aversion to most fruit and a lot of veggies, and have been this way since I was a toddler. I do like some veggies, and even tried asparagus for the first time last month. My parents had a garden when I was young, so I was involved with what to plant, picking some for dinner, etc. But, I stuck with the basics of peas, beans, corn and raw carrots.

Now, I would much rather eat raw veggies than cooked ones by themselves. If they're part of a dish, then its often okay but it depends. For me, onions are never okay in any form other than powder. Cooked carrots are gross unless they're part of a stew or pot pie. Peas in almost any form, especially farm fresh right out of the combine hopper (except for snap pea pods - odd texture and weird sweetness).

I've never had a medical issue that was due to a lack of fruit or veggies, and none of my doctors have really expressed concern over it.

rachiefofo

Ever since I was young I HATED all fruits and vegetables. It was a texture and taste thing.. As I got older my taste buds started to change and now I love spinach salad, bananas, onions, green peppers, corn, squash, avacado, etc.. But the fruits I don't like, I try to make them into smoothies. I also take a daily vitamin (I know its not a substitute but a little is better than none!)

My suggestion to people who don't eat fruits or veggies at all... just try them!!! Try a little peanut butter on a banana or seasoning on peppers. Add a little kick to the fruit/veggie

tasty!

mystiedragonfly

Veggies - I only post one or two I have with each meal/snack unless it is something I know has a lot of salt/fat/calories like avocados or olives. Most veggies are 15 calories or less. If I have eaten 1800 calories logged that day, I am not going to beat myself up for not posting ALL my veggies.

Fruit - I am diabetic and can only allow myself a certain amount of sugar a day. I do prefer this to be natural sugars that are found in fruit, however, a single banana is 19 grams a sugar. Though, I find the nutrition value of a banana worth adding it to my daily intake, other fruits, I have to pick and choose if I want to have the added sugar or no.
P.S. In the summer, I DO eat a lot of crenshaw fruit. It has protein