Issues: Consumption and Nutrition

PMA Analysis of 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey

Adolescents Not Getting Enough Fruits/Vegetables

In the 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. students in grades 9-12, in both private and public schools indicated that the percentage of adolescents consuming less than the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables a day is unsatisfactorily high.

The national average of 9-12 graders not getting five servings a day hovers at 80%. The survey indicated 80% of adolescents reported eating fewer than five servings of fruit and vegetables every day for at least seven days prior to the survey date. The percentages vary widely from state to state. However, no state had more than 25% of its students eating five servings of fruit and vegetables a day. In the CDC survey, 44 states and 14 cities participated. Look at the table below to see how your state/city scored.

For more information about wellness policies for schools, see Promoting Fruits and Vegetables in Schools: Wellness Policy Opportunities. This policy template comes from the National Alliance for Nutrition and Activity, in which PMA is a partner.

This information may be important as you work with PMA to improve nutrition policy at the national, state, and local level to boost fruit and vegetable consumption for children, which in turn improves the health of the nation’s students and the produce industry. Take action now, to support expansion of the fruit and vegetable snack program to all fifty states, visit the PMA Advocacy Action Center.

This information came from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, available at www.cdc.gov/yrbss.

States	% kids overweight %kids at risk for overweight	% eating fewer than 5 servings of fruits/ vegetables a day	% offering fruit/vegetables for sale	% offering 100% juice for sale	% not allowing purchase of candy, high fat snacks, soft drinks etc.	% that teach critical nutrition and dietary topics
Alabama	15 18	85	21	72	83	N/A
Alaska	11 14	84	21	82	44	51
Arizona	12 14	85	43	71	32	67
Arkansas	15 17	86	28	72	15	69
Connecticut	11 15	78	58	86	33	50
Delaware	14 15	84	45	96	46	52
Georgia	12 15	82	20	75	50	N/A
Hawaii	14 14	81	19	53	78	N/A
Idaho	7 14	82	33	77	17	68
Iowa	12 15	83	43	87	60	56
Kentucky	16 17	83	20	67	78	N/A
Maine	11 14	81	50	95	63	56
Massachusetts	11 16	N/A	51	86	27	57
Michigan	12 13	83	55	86	19	61
Missouri	14 16	83	33	76	31	70
Montana	9 13	83	27	86	34	58
Nebraska	11 14	87	25	82	78	54
New Hampshire	11 13	N/A	54	83	45	54
New Mexico	12 15	82	35	69	18	N/A
New York	11 17	78	45	84	43	58
North Carolina	14 16	N/A	40	84	53	73
North Dakota	11 13	86	22	83	58	72
Oklahoma	15 16	84	19	57	15	65
South Carolina	13 14	84	27	77	25	67
Tennessee	15 18	82	28	76	65	73
Texas	14 15	81	56	89	56	N/A
Utah	6 11	80	51	87	10	64
Vermont	9 14	76	50	83	25	N/A
Wisconsin	10 14	N/A	49	86	51	57
Cities
Chicago	16 19	78	34	81	33	52
Dallas	21 17	84	46	89	20	84
District of Columbia	11 21	80	16	78	21	43
Ft. Lauderdale	12 16	77	16	73	62	N/A
Los Angeles	16 18	72	54	87	27	68
Memphis	16 18	82	20	90	51	76
Miami	12 17	77	47	82	44	72
New Orleans	16 18	80	15	62	30	50
Orange County, FL	12 15	78	61	84	31	69
Palm Beach, FL	10 14	74	55	91	33	N/A
Philadelphia	15 19	83	46	90	18	68
San Bernardino, CA	16 20	81	67	83	33	N/A
San Diego	13 14	81	77	72	10	N/A
San Francisco	10 13	N/A	55	69	0	N/A

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