Doesn't anyone each fruit and veg anymore?

kimwig

Having been on fitness pal for over 8 months and lost over 35lb, getting my BMI into the normal range, I have been looking at how others are either losing weight (or not in some cases) and it seems to me that people don't eat veggies and fruit anymore. There seems to be a lot of processed and takeaway foods, and lots of excuses as to why it is too hard to get and prepare veggies
Is this the case, have we stopped realizing how good veggies are for us! What happened, is this why we are seeing such increases in obesity.

ZebraHead

I eat Fruits (some) and veggies (alot) like a crazy person. I am sure many others on MFP do the same.

No junk processed foods for me (almost never).

smuehlbauer

You're not looking at the right food journals then.
I eat a crap load for veggies and fruit.
I try to eat as much of the real food as possible.
I have my quick nights, like tonight where I eat my turkey burgers, but I usually have some a veggie with it.
I try to eats the least amount of processed foods as I can.
(baby steps sometimes!)
Steph:flowerforyou:

VeryKerri

I eat tons of fruits and veggies every day. Not going to lie and say I don't eat processed foods also, but if you look at my diary, you will def see fruits and veggies galore! 80 pounds down couldn't be done without them!

jessieleah

I didn't used to eat fruits and veggies, but I've started putting them into my every day diet. I'm still not very into that many veggies, but I'm working on it! I love fruits, though. Sadly allergic to apples, peaches and cherries.

AnaNotBanana

As someone who avoided veggies at all costs before I can say that it would be very difficult to lose weight without eating ANY fruits or veggies. I know I should probably eat more veggies but I eat two piece of fruit a day at least. I think it's difficult to generalize EVERYONE in one category or another. For every person that only eats frozen meals, there is someone who only eats "whole"/unprocessed/organic foods.

lizb59

I think salad is always looked at as a "diet" food - so people on diets think they have to eat it, then get sick of it! There are other ways to go besides salad - green beans and walnuts, Persian eggplant stew, baked sweet potatoes, roasted cauliflower....the possibilities are endless...

TheMaidOfAstolat

I eat tons...every day. I have to, it makes up the bulk of my diet. I'm a vegetarian and I couldn't imagine just living off of breads and protein sources.

NoAdditives

I eat almost no processed foods and don't eat fast food. We rarely eat out at restaurants. We cook all our food and eat fruits and vegetables, though we could be eating more.

ctheslayer

I have not perused a lot of food diaries to come up with good data points but from what I see in my own diary, I average 3 fruits a day, cook my own dinners using ingredients close to the source and organic and at least 1 bowl of fresh veggie salad everyday. The most processed food I consume are dairy products just because I don't have a cow to milk and I don't know how to churn for my own butter and cheese.

Speaking of .... there is a large organic Fuji apple and 2 Laughing Cow cheese wedges sitting on my work table with my name on it.

HeatherBunnell

I think salad is always looked at as a "diet" food - so people on diets think they have to eat it, then get sick of it! There are other ways to go besides salad - green beans and walnuts, Persian eggplant stew, baked sweet potatoes, roasted cauliflower....the possibilities are endless...

Ok, now I'm hungry! That sounds yummy!!

Mindful_Trent

I eat a good about of veggies most days and one (occasionally two) servings of fruit some days - not every day. Maybe you're just not looking at the right food diaries!

NuclearGirl

I love fruit & veggies - can't get enough of them!

crystal_sapphire

I agree with your thought process of eating vegetables. I love veggies and have them everyday. They should be making up the bulk of what we eat ideally.

To be honest though - who cares what others are eating? Does it really affect you personally enough to post about it? You come off kind of smug. Maybe whoever you are looking at has food allergies (and yes many people have allergies or intolerance to both). Maybe they really just hate vegetables and fruit. They are the ones losing out on the awesome benefits of eating them.

godblessourhome

i eat 1-2 servings of fruit a day and 3-5 servings of veggies. some times they are included or 'hidden' in a recipe and might not have its own entry, but they are there.

ChancyW

i eat 1-2 servings of fruit a day and 3-5 servings of veggies. some times they are included or 'hidden' in a recipe and might not have its own entry, but they are there.

Exactly!

Shash27

i eat 1-2 servings of fruit a day and 3-5 servings of veggies. some times they are included or 'hidden' in a recipe and might not have its own entry, but they are there.

That's how I am too :flowerforyou:

phitme

I eat tons of fruits & veggies. My problem is not those. It's the things I eat in addition to those.

YeaILift

I eat about three servings of spinach a day like my main man Popeye. :smokin:

ladyhawk00

I eat a lot of fruits/veggies. They're so easy! Just had 4 asparagus spears with lunch!

Ok, now I'll get on my soapbox.

I think one of the main reasons so many people don't eat (or don't eat enough) fruits, and especially veggies, is the way we train our kids from the very beginning. There are studies that show that our tastebuds/pleasure pathways are already beginning to be trained during pregnancy and before an ounce of "food" ever passes our lips. This means what mom eats also already starts training baby for preferences toward tastes - sweet, bitter, savory, etc. So if she's not eating veggies, or only eating certain veggies, baby will be more inclined toward not eating them as well.

The other issue is the foods we start babies on. It has become common since jar baby food came on the scene to start babies on fruits (bananas, anyone), rather than veggies. Or even if veggies are given, they are the "sweet" tasting ones (peas, carrots). Babies tend to like the sweet flavors better (don't you?) so they eat them easier/better (see above where baby's tastebuds have already been effected.)

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking those fruits and veggies. But the first foods baby tastes should at the very least be a variety of flavors. Our tastebuds are generally fully trained in the first year or two toward certain flavors. There is some variance for personal likes/dislikes, but we will tend to follow those preferences set in the first couple years. Tastebuds can also be retrained some, but it can be extremely difficult.

My son, 7, likes cookies and ice cream and candy, like most kids. But he also LOVES broccoli, spinach, asparagus, cauliflower, and many others. The only vegetable we've found that he doesn't like is mushrooms. When I began feeding him solid foods, he started with a variety of flavors and didn't have any processed sugar at all until a year old. He only had what was in fruits. (Yes, I know, ironic that I was so intent on his healthy eating and have become so lax about mine - but I'm changing it.)

Fruits and veggies are important - even before we're born!

*climbs down* Thank you for listening! :bigsmile:

jrbanta

That looks like my cat weight and all! Yes I do eat fruits and veggies every day. 1-2 fruits and 2-3 veggie servings on a good day! It's the only way to fill up with fewer calories and get my food in for the day. I try to stay away from processed foods and always read labels for fat, calorie, fiber and carb content. Love sweets though which is why I'm on this site and working to lose.