Health Survey England Additional Analyses, Ethnicity and Health, 2011-2019 Experimental statistics

The World Health Organisation recommends that adults eat at least 400g of fruit and vegetables a day in order to promote general health and reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases.¹ The NHS interprets this recommendation with advice to eat at least five 80g portions every day (the 5 A Day campaign).²

The Health Survey for England (HSE) has asked about fruit and vegetable consumption since 2001. Between 2011 and 2019, these questions were included in 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2018.

Since 2011, the questionnaire asks about consumption of different types of fruit and vegetables on the previous day, including the amount eaten:

• Salad
• Pulses
• Vegetables
• Fruit juice
• Fresh, dried, frozen and tinned fruit

Between 2011 and 2018, fruit and vegetable consumption remained broadly stable. Between 24% and 26% of men and between 27% and 32% of women consumed five or more portions of fruit and vegetables a day.

In the same period, the average (mean) number of portions consumed by men varied between 3.4 and 3.6 portions and among women consumption varied between 3.7 and 3.9 portions.³

Consuming five or more portions of fruit and vegetables a day varied across ethnic groups from 21% to 39% of men and from 27% to 48% of women.

Once age was taken into account, no groups of men stood out as having particularly high proportions who consumed the recommended five portions. Consumption was lowest among white Irish, black Caribbean and white British men. Among women, the proportions eating five or more portions was highest among women from Chinese and Other white backgrounds, lowest among white British women.⁴

Average (mean) vegetable consumption varied with ethnicity from 3.3 to 4.6 portions a day among men and from 3.6 to 5.3 portions a day among women.

Taking age into account, no group of men stood out as having particularly high mean consumption. Mean consumption was lowest among black Caribbean, white British and white Irish men. Among women, mean consumption was highest among women from Chinese and Other white backgrounds. No group of women stood out as having particularly low consumption.⁵