Research Findings: The Global Phytonutrient Report

We are committed to phytonutrient research, and have published our findings in the British Journal of Nutrition and our Global Phytonutrient Report.

But what exactly did our research find? Some pretty large gaps between the amount of fruits and vegetables people should eat and what they actually eat. And that means they are missing out on some crucial health benefits.

Some key findings:

• 60-87% of adults across 13 geographic regions fall short of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) minimum recommendation of 5 servings per day (400g) of fruits and vegetables*
• Most adults worldwide would have to at least double their current intake of fruits and vegetables to meet WHO’s recommendation
• Adults consuming five or more daily servings of fruits and vegetables had average intakes of phytonutrients at two to six times that of those who ate fewer than five servings per day*
• Phytonutrient intake estimates varied considerably across some regions because of the different fruits and vegetables available in those regions

Dr. Keith Randolph, technology strategist for the Nutrilite Health Institute and co-author of the article in the British Journal of Nutrition, hopes that publication of the research helps people understand the magnitude and extent of the continuing shortfall.

“Despite the high level of authoritative guidance for dietary intakes in this area, there is not yet a global region where intake levels approach the minimum intake guidelines,” he said. “This needs to change.”

Do you eat at least five servings (400g) of fruits and vegetables every day?

Find the facts and why it matters in the Global Phytonutrient Report by clicking here.

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* The Global Phytonutrient Report: A Global Snapshot of Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Availability, and Implications for Phytonutrient Intakes was developed by Nutrilite using results from an analysis of fruit and vegetable intakes conducted for Nutrilite by Exponent, Inc.** The analysis of fruit and vegetable intakes was conducted using data from several sources: World Health Organization’s (WHO) World Health Survey (WHS), the Global Environment Monitoring System – Food Contamination Monitoring and Assessment Programme (GEMS/Food) and the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Supply Utilization Accounts (SUA) and Food Balance Sheets. All implications and inferences presented in The Global Phytonutrient Report were prepared by Nutrilite and represent the opinions of Nutrilite.

The thirteen regions in the analysis conducted for Nutrilite by Exponent, Inc. correspond to the 2006 diet clusters identified by the WHO GEMS/Food Program and include: Americas and Australia (e.g. United States); South/Central America (e.g. Mexico); South America (e.g. Brazil); Southern Europe/Mediterranean (e.g. Italy); Western Europe (e.g. Germany); Northern Europe (e.g. Sweden); Eastern Europe (e.g. Russia); Asia (A) (e.g. China and India); Asia (B) (e.g. Japan and Korea); Northern Africa/Middle East (e.g. Morocco); Central Africa (A) (e.g. Cameroon); Central Africa (B) (e.g. Nigeria); Southern Africa (e.g. South Africa). Both Asia and Central Africa were separated by GEMS into two clusters.