Servings For A Fruit & Vegetable Diet

Filling your diet full of fruits and vegetables can help you manage your weight, whether you are drastically increasing your produce consumption or opting to enjoy only fruits and veggies for a short period of time. Fruits and vegetables are full of fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, but you need to have a certain number of servings per day. Talk with your physician before you decide to make any changes to your diet to avoid any adverse health effects.

Foundation of the Diet

Some diets allow you to consume strictly fruits and vegetables for a set period of time. The purpose of these types of diets is to restrict your caloric intake, thus speeding up weight loss. Additionally, some proponents claim that fruit and vegetable diets can "detox" your body by removing toxins left behind by processed foods. If you follow a diet that restricts all foods except for fresh produce, you may need to consume as many as nine servings or more of fruits and vegetables per day to get enough calories to support basic functions.

Fruit Servings

According to the American Dietetic Association, one serving of fruit is equivalent to 1/2 cup of canned fruit, 4 oz. of 100 percent fruit juice, 2 tbsp. of dried fruit or a 4-oz. piece of fresh whole fruit. One serving provides about 60 calories and 15 g of carbohydrates. Fruits do not provide fat or protein.

Vegetable Servings

Vegetables can be either starchy or non-starchy. Starchy veggies, such as corn, potatoes, yams and various types of squash, contain higher amounts of carbohydrates and calories. A serving of starchy vegetables equals about a 1/2-cup or 4-oz. serving, which provides 80 calories, 15 g of carbs, up to 3 g of protein and less than 1 g of fat. Nonstarchy vegetables include salad greens, spinach, broccoli, peppers, onions, tomatoes and eggplant. One serving of non-starchy veggies is 1/2 cup cooked or 1 cup raw vegetables, which has 25 calories, 5 g of carbohydrates, 2 g of protein and no fat.

Benefits

Fruits and vegetables are loaded with fiber to aid in digestion. According to research published in the "Metabolism" journal in 2001, following a very high-fiber diet filled with fruits, vegetables and nuts can reduce your risk of heart disease and colon cancer. The recommended amount of fiber for women is about 25 g, but men need 38 g. One serving of fruit or vegetables can provide as much as 3 g of fiber. Subjects in the study consumed 55 g of fiber per 1,000 calories ingested. Based on a 2,000-calorie diet, this can be three to four times more fiber than recommended. If you are not used to consuming fiber, too much at once can lead to gastrointestinal problems such as diarrhea, bloating, abdominal cramps or constipation. Fiber sits in your gut and takes awhile for your body to pass. This can help with your weight loss efforts since it keeps you full for awhile so you don't get hungry between meals.