Irish vegetable consumption remains one of lowest in Europe

Irish consumers tend to shun vegetables, cling to simplistic notions that "carrots help you see in the dark", and ignore research indicating they can counteract cancer and heart disease, according to a leading EU nutritionist.

The Republic continues to have one of the lowest levels of vegetable consumption in Europe, in defiance of increasingly clear evidence that low intake of fruit and vegetables "greatly increases the risk of diseases such as heart disease and cancer," Prof Mike Gibney said last night.

In a lecture at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, the professor of nutrition at TCD said the latest research unequivocally shows that the people who eat the most fruit and vegetables have the lowest risk of developing these diseases. A review of 170 studies of fruit and vegetable intake and cancer shows that in 78 per cent, "a significant protective effect was observed".

The failure of Irish people to take these findings on board was in part due to complacency, he said.

If asked to identify what was required for a healthy lifestyle, they would get it largely right.

Yet when asked if they agree or disagree with the statement, "I do not need to make changes to the food I eat as it is already healthy enough", 66 per cent of respondents "agree strongly" or "tend to agree".

"We have to get across to them that this is not enough. A different kind of message is needed," Prof Gibney added.

Research in Glasgow among people who have low vegetable/ fruit intake had underlined the need for significantly increasing daily consumption. "And I mean daily," he said.

Significant meant consuming on a daily basis a piece of fruit for a snack; a glass of fruit juice, one, two or three portions of vegetables, and possibly a fruit dessert.

Prof Gibney said that when there is a convergence of public health and commercial interests, opportunities for consumers should be fully exploited. In the case of vegetables, for example, producers were generating something which not only contained nutrients but could also reduce disease risk. The lecture was sponsored by the frozen food company, Birds Eye.

He said he had no magic cure for children's dislike of vegetables. But more variety and more attractive presentation were making it easier to secure acceptability.