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Brit Parents Still Swear by Potato Chips: Survey

by Tanya Thomas on Jun 24 2008 2:59 PM

Believe it or not, most British parents still think potato chips are a tasty version of a vegetable packed with nutrients!

The survey of 1000 sets of parents has shown that nearly 50 percent of the parents are ignorant of basic nutrition and don't realise that greens cooked as part of a meal count as a portion of vegetable.

Though many people considered potatoes to be a vegetable, they do not contain as many nutrients as other vegetables and were more correctly associated with starches such as rice and pasta.

According to the survey led by Department of Health more than a third of said that they believed that a baked potato counted as a portion of vegetables.

Another five per cent identified chips as a vegetable.

Azmina Govindji, from the British Dietetic Association, said there was strong evidence that eating enough fruit and vegetables could reduce the risk of contracting certain diseases, including cancer.

"There is a lot of research which shows that eating 400 grams, or five portions, of fruit and vegetables every day can reduce your risk of certain types of cancer and of coronary heart disease," Telegraph quoted Govindji, as saying.

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"More widely, eating lots of fruit and vegetables is linked to a lower risk of being obese, which can accrue many problems, not least diseases like diabetes," she added.

Almost eight out of ten said that frozen fruit and vegetables did not count towards the Government recommendations of five portions a day.

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Another 8 out of 10 parents under the age of 34 said that they struggled with the cost of buying fresh fruit and vegetables.

Source-ANI
TAN/L


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