title: Fruits and vegetables intake and characteristics associated among adolescents from Southern Brazil.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Increased body weight has been associated with an unhealthy diet, low consumption of fruits and vegetables. Our objective was to investigate whether adolescents had low intake of fruits and vegetables, and whether gender, age and education could affect the feeding patterns.
  
  
  METHODS
  A population-based sample of adolescents, aged 12-19 years, were randomly selected in southern Brazil and included in this cross-sectional study. The total daily consumption of fruits, vegetables, rice and beans were investigated in standardized household interviews, using a food frequency questionnaire and questions, being categorized as five or more servings per day as the five-a-day diet. ANOVA, ANCOVA, and modified Poisson regression were used in the analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Adolescents (n = 568) were included, 49.5% boys, 14.3% had overweight and 8.8% obesity. Approximately 23% of participants consumed five daily servings of fruits and vegetables. It was observed that 36.7% of boys and 31.0% of girls consumed less than one serving of fruit per day, and 58.4% and 44.6%, respectively, consumed less than one serving of vegetables. The consumption of vegetables, fruits, and rice and beans were not independently associated with gender. Overweight was associated with higher intake of five-a-day, independently of confounding factors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Adolescents from southern Brazil have lower frequency of consumption of five servings a day of fruits and vegetables combined.
authors.affiliation: Cardiolab-Hypertension, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre. Ramiro Barcelos 2350, Centro de Pesquisa Clínica, CEP 90035-003, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marta A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Rieth
authors.forename: Marina B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Moreira
authors.forename: Flávio D
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Fuchs
authors.forename: Leila B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Moreira
authors.forename: Sandra C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Fuchs
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014675:Vegetables; D055815:Young Adult