OUR EATING SCOREBOARD

The 2005 USDA Food Guide Pyramid has increased the recommended servings of fruits to 2-4 daily and vegetables to 3-5 daily, spearheading the change with their "5 a day" campaign and noting that we are particularly deficient in consumption of fruits.

Current food consumption estimates for Americans

* Only 10% eat even 5 daily servings of fruits and vegetables.
* Average fruit consumption is only 1.4 servings daily.
* Only 17% eat 2-4 fruits daily.
* Only 12% have what could be called a "good" diet.

Faculty members in the Harvard School of Public Health feel the revised government recommendations still fall short, are much too heavily influenced by powerful food lobby groups, and do not put into perspective the wealth of research conducted during the last ten years that has reshaped the definition of healthy eating.


THE PHYTONUTRIENT REVOLUTION

Phytonutrients have catapulted to the top of nutritional science research. "Phytonutrients Take Center Stage" was published in the December 1999 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.

Phytonutrients are a class of health-promoting, bio-active compounds with many sub-categories. By some counts, more than 100,000 phytonutrient compounds have already been identified and catalogued. Around the world, new discoveries are being continually made by health scientists. Some of the more common class names are Carotenoids and Flavonoids (Polyphenols).

Most known phytonutrients are strongly related to pigment. Dark red and blue pigmented flavonoids, with names like isoflavones, anthocyanins, flavinols, catechins and phenols are dominant in fruits. And richly colored fruits are considered to be a potent source of antioxidants.

(And no, this does not mean that drinking darker colored soft drinks is healthier than the lemon-lime varieties! We should banish them all from our diets!)

Perhaps most important to know about phytonutrients and fruits is that they appear to be far more beneficial and effective in promoting health when a combination of fruits (not just a single fruit) is consumed.

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