How Many Fruits and Vegetables Do You Need Daily?

I’m pretty sure you’ve heard that you’re supposed to eat at least five servings of fruit and vegetables a day. But do you have any idea what that means?

Studies show that eating more vegetables and fruits has been linked to a lower risk of lung, oral, esophageal, stomach, and colon cancer–and the USDA food pyramid recommends eating 3 to 5 servings of vegetables and 2 to 4 servings of fruit a day. Which actually equals out to a range of 5 to 9 servings a day. But how do we know what’s in a serving, and how many should we eat within the combined 5 to 9 range? It has become even more confusing when the talk shifts from servings to cups, which are not necessarily the same.

Your daily fruit and vegetable needs depend on your calorie needs, which are determined by your age, sex, and physical activity level. To find out how many servings you need, I really like this calculator created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It keeps it very clear by telling you how many cups you need daily. I was interersted to find that for my age, gender and activity the calculator recommends 2 cups of fruit and 2.5 cups of vegetables every day–how much do you need?

To get an idea of how much one cup is, here is a quick summary:

one large banana
eight large strawberries
two large plums
fifteen grapes
one apple
one pear
one cup of raw or cooked vegetables
two cups of raw leafy greens
one half cup dried fruit
twelve baby carrots
one large ear of corn

A half cup is equal to:

one half cup orange or other fruit juice

five broccoli florets

six baby carrots

one half grapefruit

one medium wedge of cantaloupe

half of a baked sweet potato

one quarter cup of raisins

five broccoli florets

Do you meet the recommended requirements? Do have any great tips for getting extra fruit and vegetables in your daily diet?

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Maritza G.

6:49PM PDT on Sep 26, 2011

Thanks. I need more fruts and veggies!

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Past Member .

8:30AM PDT on Sep 7, 2011

Good to know, thanks!

Carole L.

3:04PM PST on Feb 20, 2011

The calculator link was fun. The major part of my diet are fruit and vegetables but honestly, I can't consume the quantity that was recommended. I then used the calculator for my kids and I am certain that the quantity of fruit and vegetables is greater than the total amount of food they eat.

Charles W.

8:23AM PST on Feb 20, 2011

My diabetes doctor made it really simple. divide a plate in half. One half veggies, 1 quarter meat or other animal protein and the other quarter carbs, including fruit--2/da. I eat less than a quarter carbs--no breads, rice, potatoes, pasta, etc. I have just lost my desire for carbs. Sometimes I hsve some beans, but not much or my glucose spikes. Best fruits--cantelope and berries. Apples send my sugar through the roof, yet, peaches, pears and others don't. Go figure. I don't touch bananas. Don't even want to try them. I I have lowered my glucose over 300 points without insulin.

Nate S.

9:41AM PDT on Aug 26, 2010

I think it's a great idea, but I don't know many people who can pull it off, at least not regularly. For us (my lovely wife and me), it came down to finding a supplement to help -- a friend turned us onto this, and it's made a huge difference in our overall health and energy level. If anyone's interested..... http://bit.ly/b32mf9

Jan Carlo T.

8:38PM PDT on May 30, 2010

thanks for the link to the calculator. as per calculator, i need 2 cups of fruits and 3 cups of vegetables. i think i'm on track :)

3:43AM PST on Jan 30, 2010

A serving of fruit at least once a day,..more is better. Breakfast and dinner is a good time for a fruit dessert. Three different veggies a day is good. Try to get at least one yellow and one green. Beans and all legumes are also veggies and very healthy. Eat the raw ones too at least twice a day,..in salads or just munch them raw. I love to snack on raw carrots. Sliced tomatoes are great anytime.
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Sonny H.

6:08AM PST on Jan 13, 2010

Five servings a day? We are lucky if we have at most 1 to 2 servings of fruits and vegies a day.

Miss R.

1:17PM PST on Jan 7, 2010

I like that list explaining just how much these serves are meant to be... My intake is a little down on the 2 and 2.5 cups :-/ But combine those cups with the other food I'm meant to eat and I would explode! I just can't eat that much. I think a balanced diet, even if its in lower quantities, is going to be the best I can do.

Sharon H.

8:42AM PDT on Oct 1, 2009

Tony, a big problem is that if you don't eat enough, you won't get enough calories or nutrition and you can wind up malnourished. Our calories need to up with the amount of physical activity so older people need less because they are generally a lot more inactive. Of course if they ate more fruit they'd probably feel the urge to be more active too. Whenever I used to visit my grandmother I could see the boost in energy she'd get when I prepared the meals (salad with lots of garlic, avocado, etc) and the next morning she was always so pleased with her painless bowel movement instead of a rabbit pellet. The elderly simply eat too much soft & cooked food.

I really think sunshine plays a huge role in our health. Light is like a vitamin for us. Long-lived cultures tend to be spending a lot of time outdoors, often eating fermented foods so they are keeping digestion healthy. We need to move our bodies too. Our lifestyle (including my own!) is far too sedentary. Running beside car exhaust doesn't make much sense though either or swimming in acidic chlorine.

I'm not big on supplements. I use a detoxer to make sure my mineral receptors are not blocked by heavy metals so I can actually utilize the good stuff in the food and also a probiotic superfood. I use Liqui-Dulse for my thyroid too and every few days I use a liquid nutritional booster. In cold/flu season I use an immune booster when I venture out to public places and Vit D3 in winter.