Is your state meeting its fruit and veggie goal?

The answer is no. According to Healthy People 2010, there is not one state in the country that meets the national goals for daily fruit and vegetable consumption. The goals are 2 fruits a day and 3 vegetables a day.

As seen in this chart, we are 50% below these goals.

Sorry news for March as it's National Nutritional Month®

Eating healthy requires eating fruits and vegetables, not vitamins, not supplements, not veggie drinks.

Produce provide us with vitamins, minerals, fiber, and plenty of disease-fighting antioxidants. In fact, it's well established that people who eat vegetables daily, as part of an overall healthy diet, are likely to reduce their risk of many chronic illnesses, including type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

Here are few health tips that may come in handy next time you are at the grocery store:

1. Look for fresh fruits and vegetables when you can. In colder months, canned fruits and vegetables can be a great option, but be sure to look for labels that read "packed in its own juices" or "unsweetened." You'll save on calories and get a truer taste.


2. Frozen vegetables and fruits are also a wonderful option, especially in the winter months. Look for "naked" vegetables, rather than vegetables in cream or cheese sauces. Go a clean taste and you get way fewer calories.


3. Canned soups and vegetables can be quick and easy, the healthiest option is to choose low-sodium versions.

*Tips adapted from the ADA

New veggie options in the freezer

New packaging innovations for veggies may be worth a try. Steam-in-bag veggies hit the supermarket several years ago but new packaging technology has progressed allowing more gourmet vegetable dishes.

Vegetable steam-in-bags puff up under the pressure of steam created within the packaging. Veggies, seasonings and any sauces steam directly in the microwave without transferring to a cooking dish. Popular because they taste like side dishes you'd get in restaurants, they're also easy to fix.

Pre-seasoned vegetables are available from Birds Eye and Green Giant. Birds Eye's offerings add a cheese sauce to their broccoli/carrots/cauliflower combination and a butter sauce to their green beans. Way to knock out the pluses of eating your veggies.

Green Giant has a line of Health Blends designed to meet certain health goals. For example, "Digestive Health" blend includes carrots, navy beans and spinach in a garlic herb sauce and is high in fiber promoting a healthy digestive system.

More interestingly, Green Giant's Just for One single-serve frozen vegetables are endorsed by Weight Watchers touting a 0 point Broccoli and Cheese Sauce (40 calories) that comes in its own steam tray. Single servings are a way for a dieter to eat a vegetable dish that their family wouldn't.

Carrie Taylor, registered dietitian for Big Y's supermarkets says, "steamable veggies are an easy way to make a meal healthier." She's not a big fan of seasoned blends with even the lightly sauced having high salt, sugar and fat content. "I recommend that fruits and vegetables should stand on their own, without added sauces. If sauce is preferred, it's better for people to add the sauce themselves."

Excerpts from an article in Supermarket News 2/1/10 by Carol Angrisani