Increasing fruit and vegetable intake. « Five a day » versus « just one more ».

The present randomized controlled intervention study tested the hypothesis that a personally adaptable and realistic "just 1 more" goal would be more effective for increasing fruits and vegetables (FV) intake compared to the common "5 a day" goal. Study participants (N=84 students, 85% female) consumed less than 4 servings of FVs per day at recruitment. During the 1-week intervention, participants randomized to the 5 a day-group were asked to eat 5 servings of FVs/day; participants of the just 1 more-group were asked to eat 1 serving more of FVs than they usually did, and participants of the control group were instructed to eat as usual. Measurements were taken before (T1), directly following (T2), and 1 week after (T3) the intervention. Participants in the 5 a day-group increased their average FV intake significantly by about one serving from 2.49 at T1 to 3.45 servings/day at T3. At T3, only the 5 a day-group-not the just 1 more-group-had a significantly higher FV intake than the control group. Contrary to the hypothesis, the "5 a day" goal was more effective than "just 1 more" for increasing FV intake. Results of our study support the rationale of the "5 a day" campaign, at least in the short term.