The University of Minnesota Cancer Prevention Research Unit vegetable and fruit classification scheme (United States)

Abstract

High vegetable and fruit (V&F) intake has been associated with a lower risk of many cancers. However, the specific V&F, the active compounds present in V&F, and the dose at which they confer protection are unknown. Standard methods for assessing, classifying, and quantifying V&F exposures in epidemiologic studies have not been established. Differences among studies occur due to inherent differences among V&F, and across dietary assessment methods, study populations, etiologic hypotheses, and analytic methods. The V&F classification scheme presented here characterizes and quantifies V&F consumption for elucidating risk relationships, identifying chemopreventive compounds present in V&F, and facilitating identification of potential biomarkers of V&F intake. Broad criteria define which plant foods count as V&F. Formation of food groups is based on proposed biological mechanisms of action. Five main groups are included: Total V&F; Total Vegetables; Total Fruits; and two groups orthogonal to these -- the Botanical and Phytochemical groups. Subgroups are specified within each main group. V&F exposure is quantified as the absolute amount consumed (weight) or as the number of household servings. This classification scheme has public health applications and may be used to examine associations with chronic diseases other than cancer.

Intake of Fruits and Vegetables and Risk of Pancreatic Cancer in a Pooled Analysis of 14 Cohort Studies

“…Potatoes and mature beans were not classified as vegetables because of their high starch and protein content (35), respectively, compared with other vegetables. We examined fruits and vegetables grouped according to botanical taxonomy (36) to evaluate potentially rich sources of particular bioactive compounds. We also examined individual fruits and vegetables for which intake had been assessed in at least half of the studies.…”

Fruit and vegetable intake and head and neck cancer risk in a large United States prospective cohort study

“…We also examined groups based on botanical taxonomy to help identify possible associations according to chemopreventive phytochemicals. 20 We used tertiles for the botanical groups because of the large number of participants who did not regularly consume food items from some of the botanical groups.…”

Changes in intake of fruits and vegetables in relation to risk of obesity and weight gain among middle-aged women

“…In this analysis, some specific vegetables were combined into groups. 9 For example, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts were grouped as cruciferous vegetables; carrots, yellow squash, yams, and sweet potatoes were categorized as dark and yellow vegetables; spinach, kale, and lettuce were in the group of green leafy vegetables; and corn, mixed vegetables, celery, eggplant, mushrooms, and beets were categorized into other vegetables. The validity of the FFQ has been evaluated; 10 when comparing FFQ with four 7-day dietary records, the correlation coefficient was 0.80 for apples, 0.79 for bananas, 0.84 for grapefruits, 0.69 for broccoli, and 0.73 for tomatoes.…”