Fruit & Vegetable Screeners in the Eating at America's Table Study (EATS): Scoring

The information collected from each screener can be used to estimate the total number of servings of fruits and vegetables consumed daily.

From 1992 to 2004, in its Food Guide Pyramid dietary guidance, USDA's recommended daily amounts of fruits and vegetables were framed in terms of servings. A Pyramid serving was defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) as:

• vegetables: 1 cup raw leafy or 1/2 cup of other vegetables, cooked or chopped raw;
• fruit juices: 3/4 cup; and
• fruit: 1 whole fruit or 1/2 cup of cut-up fruit.

In its 2005 MyPyramid dietary guidance, USDA changed the metric for recommended daily amounts of fruits and vegetables from servings to cup equivalents. MyPyramid defines a cup equivalent of fruits and vegetables as:

• vegetables: 2 cups raw leafy or 1 cup of other vegetables, cooked or chopped raw;
• fruit juices: 1 cup; and
• fruit: 1 whole fruit (e.g., large banana, large orange, large peach, medium pear, small apple) or 1 cup of cut-up fruit.

Scoring the Screeners