By
Eleanor Baker, MS, RD, LDN
How
many servings of vegetables did you eat yesterday?
According to the United
States Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, “while Americans
are consuming more vegetables and fruit than in 1970, the average U.S. diet
still falls short of the recommendations in the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines.”1
The
current 2015-2020 USDA Dietary Guidelines recommend consuming 2 ½ servings of
vegetables per day on a 2000 calorie diet. One serving of vegetables is
equivalent to:
· 1 cup of
raw or cooked vegetables
· 1 cup of
vegetable juice
· 2 cups
leafy salad greens
· ½ cup of
dried vegetables2
Don’t have a measuring cup on you? No worries!
Did you know that your fist (or a baseball) is roughly the size of one cup and
therefore half of your fist is equal to ½ cup. Vegetables are great sources of “dietary
fiber, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, copper, magnesium, vitamin
E, vitamin B6, folate, iron, manganese, thiamin, niacin, and choline.”2
Want to
take your nutrition to the next level?
Overall weekly goals are
broken down further into vegetable subgroups. For the 2000 calorie diet you
should consume:
· Dark-green:
1 ½ servings
o Provide
the most vitamin K
· Red and
orange: 5 ½ servings
o
Provide the most vitamin A
· Legumes
(beans & peas): 1 ½ servings
o
Great sources of dietary fiber
· Starchy:
5 servings
o
Potassium power houses
· Other: 4
servings2
When you hear the slogan “eat the rainbow”, you
should think about all those vibrant and delicious vegetables out there! Every
meal should include a variety of colors from either vegetables, herbs, and or
fruit. A beautiful, colorful plate is essential to a healthful diet.
Follow these simple tips to help you easily
reach your daily recommendations for vegetables while aiding in weight
management, disease prevention, and increased energy!
1. Make half of your plate at lunch and dinner
vegetables
2. Blend in frozen spinach into your morning
smoothie
3. Snack on sugar snap peas, roasted
cauliflower with red pepper flakes, or tomatoes. Whip up Greek yogurt dip (= 1
packet favorite dry dressing mix + 17.6 oz Plain Greek Yogurt) spice things up.
4. Add sprouts to breakfast sandwiches,
hoagies, or tacos
5. Try spriulized vegetables (available at the
grocery store now!) in place of pasta in your favorite pasta dish. Yellow
zucchini squash have a mild flavor and are a great place to start!
References:
1. Food Availability and Consumption.
USDA: Economic Research Service. https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/ag-and-food-statistics-charting-the-essentials/food-availability-and-consumption/. Updated Oct 18th, 2016. Accessed
Sept 6th, 2017.
2. Dietary Guidelines
Advisory Committee, HHS, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
(U.S.) & USDA , Center for Nutrition Policy Promotion (U.S.). “Dietary
Guidelines for Americans 2015-2020.” iBooks.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/dietary-guidelines-for-americans-2015-2020/id1169811308?mt=11
