Consumption of vegetables is high, but remains uneven in Brazil – 06/29/2023 – Health

Regular consumption of vegetables and fruits has increased in the last year, returning to levels before the Covid-19 pandemic, but it remains low and marked by inequities.

Less than half (45.5%) of the population consume vegetables five times or more a week. The prevalence of fruit consumption is slightly lower (41.8%). In 2022, they were 39.5% and 38.4%, respectively.

The data are from the second edition of Covitel 2023 (Telephone Survey of Risk Factors for Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases in Times of Pandemic), a project developed by Vital Strategies, a global public health organization, and UFPel (Federal University of Pelotas) with funding from Umane and support from Abrasco (Brazilian Association of Collective Health).

The numbers show that people over 65 are the ones who consume these foods the most. For example, 62.8% of them eat fruit five times or more a week.

“There are two major barriers to fruit and vegetable consumption. The first is that young people traditionally like fried, unhealthy foods. The second is purchasing power. Brazil is already migrating to the American model. Eating food ultra-processed food is very cheap, and eating fruits and vegetables ends up being more expensive”, explains Pedro Hallal, a professor at UFPel and one of the coordinators of Covitel.

Data show that women consume more vegetables than men, 51.5% and 39.1% respectively. People with higher education (12 years or more of study) ditto: 57.5% against 40.9% of the less educated (zero to eight years of study).

Regional disparities are also large. For example, in the North, 36.4% of the population includes these foods in their diet five times a week. In the South, the prevalence is 52.6%.

The regular consumption of fruits has a similar scenario: it is present in the lives of 48.2% of the more educated population, with 12 years or more of study, and 39.3% among those with zero and eight years of study.

The oldest (65 years or more) consume these foods the most (62.8% against 33.5% of the youngest), women more than men (49.6% against 33.4%), and whites more than blacks and browns (47.3% against 37.9%).

“There are two problems. In addition to the consumption of these foods being low, those who consume are those with higher income, probably, if you take into account education, race/color and region”, says Luciana Sardinha, senior manager of NCDs at Vital Strategies and one of Covitel’s coordinators.

For Pedro Hallal, there are ways to face these inequalities, with public policies that increase access to healthy foods. “That depends on investments in family farming, higher taxation on ultra-processed foods and educational campaigns. The other side of the solution is more complex, which is to reduce inequalities in the country. That’s why we need public policies that prioritize those who need it most and not those who have it most. .”

The practice of physical activity, a protective factor for CNCDs, also presents a very worrying scenario: only 31.5% of Brazilians exercise moderately or vigorously weekly for at least 150 minutes, as recommended by the WHO (World Health Organization). of health).

And, again, there is great disparity by sex, age and education. While 34.8% of men are physically active, among women this rate drops to 28.3%.

Among people with higher education (12 years or more), 48.3% are physically active, more than double the number of less educated people (zero to eight years of study), with only 20.9%.

Although the youngest are the most active (37.9% against 18.9% of the oldest), the rate is still considered very low. “All this is influencing overweight, obesity”, says Sardinha.

According to her, there is a lack of public policies that encourage people to exercise outside gyms and paid places even as a way of reducing disparities.

“Even if people want to, they don’t have adequate infrastructure. There’s no security, there’s no lighting, there’s no sidewalk to take a walk when you get home after three hours on public transport.”

For Sardinha, the health area cannot solve all these challenges alone. “It depends on an intersectionality, the various departments working towards this. You have to look at the environment, security, infrastructure, urban mobility.”