Background

The Tooty Fruity Vegie Program pages are for Health Education Professionals who are implementing the program within primary schools.

Why do we need a program to increase fruit and vegetables in children?

Epidemiological and clinical studies indicate that an adequate consumption of vegetables and fruit protects against diseases such as coronary heart diseases, hypertension, stroke, Type 2 diabetes and many forms of cancer (Signal, 1999).

Current consumption of fruit and vegetables by Australians appears well below recommended minimum requirements.

A report on food and nutrition in NSW found that less than 10% of people surveyed ate the recommended minimum of two serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables per day and that, on average, respondents ate only approximately half the minimum recommended amounts (Stickney et al, 1994). These findings are supported by those of the CSIRO, which estimated that only 10 - 20% of the Australian population consume the minimum recommended amount (CSIRO, 1993).

However, the 1995 National Nutrition Survey found that consumption of fruit and vegetables was at adequate levels in preschool but reduced as children got older: with 35% of Australian children aged 8 - 11 years eating no fruit and 20% eating no vegetables in the 24 hours prior to their survey (ABS, 1995). Similarly, the Australian Horticulture Corporation (AHC) found that 27% of Australian children aged 8 - 13 years ate no fruit or vegetables on the day of their survey (AHC, 1996).

In addition, preliminary analyses from the baseline data of the current Tooty Fruity Vegie project indicate that, among Northern Rivers, NSW primary school aged children approximately 28% of these children ate no fruit and 14% ate no vegetables during the 24 hour survey period.

These data demonstrate the need for intervention to increase fruit and vegetable consumption among the Australian population. They also highlight the need to intervene early in childhood while consumption is still at an adequate level, as dietary habits formed early in life tend to continue into adulthood (Gutlin, 1990), with 80% of obese adolescents becoming obese adults (Auld, 1988).

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