Dear DOCTOR Owen:

I hear diet counselors “pushing” fruit and vegetables all the time. I know that these food items are good for me, but they are expensive and don’t fill me up. Are these foods really necessary? What do you do?

Vegetable Matter

Dear “Matter”:

Yet another myth to tackle! I never seem to run out of “myths” because the marketing industry is so well funded while human nature is so gullible!

Why are fruits and veggies “thrust down our throats” so much? First and foremost, we humans like to eat socially and for self-entertainment. Second, we have to eat. Hunger and satiety are constant companions, and we humans are “haunted” by cravings and compulsions. Fruits and vegetables “fill the bill,” as they are socially acceptable, filling, relatively tasty, and handy.

The following questions and answers will dispel some of the myths about the so-called “miracles” of fruit and vegetables:

Q. What about their excellent nutritional qualities?

A. While fruit and vegetables have vitamins and minerals, you can get much more—better-balanced— nutritional quantities from pills and supplements (with no calories). Do the math: The average daily supplemental dose is 500 milligrams of Vitamin C. One 8-ounce glass of orange juice has only 30 milligrams of Vitamin C (and 160 calories).

Q. What about the health effects of fruit and vegetables in preventing cancer and heart disease?

A. There is a strong correlation between the amount of plant matter consumed and both cancer and heart disease. However, there is little data to show whether this is from consuming these products or from not consuming cancer-causing products.

Q. How about bowel regularity?

A. Two tablespoons of one of the popular bulk supplements (Metamucil, Citrucil, etc.) equal approximately four heads of lettuce. These products also have virtually no calories.

Q. So why are fruit and vegetables recommended so highly?

A. Statistical success. People who consume a minimum of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables and 5 meal replacement products a day have a better chance of continuing to lose weight and keeping it off. That amounts to 70 servings/week, or 10 servings/day. People who average 35 servings/week fare well, but are less successful. All people who average less than 14 servings/week re-gain weight. So, statistically, this habitual method is just plain successful.

You would not be subject to negative criticism if you ate four fruit or vegetables servings at, say, a luncheon event. However, you’d be sharply criticized by the other guests if you were to drink a liquid meal replacement instead. The fruit and veggies have been socially acceptable since the beginning of time; liquid meal replacements are still not socially acceptable.

No question—fruits and vegetables are filling. One watermelon has the same number of calories as 2 ounces, or two handfuls, of potato chips. Plant matter, which holds water and is heavy, stretches the stomach and takes longer to digest; therefore, people feel “satiated” longer. Many people feel especially satiated when they consume a small amount of lean meat.

Finally, fruits and vegetables are inexpensive—compared to what it costs to eat out at fast food places (now 50% of all eating in the United States). For example, today I prepared a “care” package for my son at college for the upcoming week: 3 pre-packaged meals/day (considered meal replacements); 5 daily servings of fruit and vegetables. The bill totaled $73—for a week’s worth of food. Compare that to the $58 I just spent on only one meal for my wife, son, and myself at a local fast food eatery!

Do not underestimate the investment involved in having vast amounts of fruit and vegetables for your household:

• Considerable less amount of time spent in the fresh produce section of the supermarket while shopping for the week.
• “Planting” these items just about everywhere—on the kitchen counter and in the TV room, in the car, at the workplace, inside the school lunch box and your purse—to get in the 5 minimum servings/day.

This is not magic—but it works.