Vegetables are rich in vitamins, minerals and fibers and, when consumed daily, they protect your health and reduce your risk of non-communicable chronic diseases and nutritional diseases. Produce vegetables for home consumption or buy them from local producers, preferably known ones.

 Make sure you use safe water for watering your vegetables.

 Prefer vegetables that have been grown without the use of pesticides.

 Gradually increase your intake of vegetables at lunch and supper.

 The minimum recommended consumption of fruits and vegetables is of 400 grams a day. This amount provides 9 to 12% of the energy consumed daily, considering a diet of 2000 Kcal. This means that the Brazilian population needs to consume three times more vegetables and fruits daily than their mean current consumption.

 Promotion of a greater consumption of vegetables regards fresh vegetables, not the canned or pickled varieties, since these are high in salt.

To learn more, please refer to the Brazilian Food Guide, available at the SANS Network library or at the Ministry of Health website.