Several epidemiological studies stress the association between a diet based on high fruits and vegetables intake and a better health condition. However, elderly Europeans cannot manage the recommended fruits and vegetables consumption. This systematic review aims to explore the main factors related to fruits and vegetables consumption in elderly Europeans. We conducted literature searches on Medline, Scopus, and Web of Science from inception to May 2022. Published articles including data related to certain fruits and vegetables consumption among elderly Europeans were selected. The New Castle-Ottawa Scale and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute tools were used for methodological quality assessment by two authors independently. A total of 60 articles were retrieved, and data from twenty-one high-quality cross-sectional studies and five moderate-to-high-quality cohort studies, including a total of 109,516 participants, were synthesized. Associated factors mostly analyzed were those relating to demographic and socioeconomic status, such as sex, age, marital status, educational level, and income. However, the findings show a high discrepancy. Some evidence suggests a possible positive association, while other evidence shows an inverse or no association at all. The relationship between demographic and socioeconomic factors with fruits and vegetables consumption is not at all clear. More epidemiological studies with an appropriate design and corresponding statistical methods are required.

Studies often suggest that the family meal is the locus for the acquisition of healthy eating habits. However, these studies rarely offer a deeper understanding of what it is about eating together as a family that increases the intake of healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables. This ethnographic study examines dinners in French households, whose children have shown to habitually consume fruits and vegetables, analyzing talk around the dinner table. Our analysis shows that naturally occurring exchanges between parents and children socialize children to experiencing eating in culturally informed ways that promote attending to the prized characteristics, such as origin, quality, taste, and preparation of food items that intrinsically elevates their value and leads to their consumption. These communicative patterns also encourage reflection and openness to foods, which, we posit, constitute ways of \'doing being French\'. Ultimately, we argue that French children\'s readiness to eat fruits and vegetables is not linked to them being healthy, but rather is derived from the cultural significance of experiencing sensory pleasure from food and from being able to talk about and share these experiences with others, that is being reflective eaters.

Food insecurity has been associated with decreased household food supplies, which could affect children\'s fruit and vegetables intakes and increases their risk of being overweight or obese. The aim of this study was to determine if food insecurity was associated with lower fruit and vegetables consumption and overweight and obesity in children from Mexican fishing communities. A cross-sectional study was 4conducted with 100 elementary-school children aged 6-12 years. A survey that evaluated socioeconomic conditions, food insecurity, and fruits and vegetables consumption was applied. Weight and height were measured. The association between key variables and food insecurity was assessed using linear regression. Sixty-four percent of households experienced food insecurity. Food-insecure children reported lower consumption of fruits and fruits plus vegetables than did their peers with food security (P trend = 0.040 and 0.038, respectively). Food insecurity was also associated with lower chance to meet the recommendation of fruit and vegetable consumption (P trend in logit < 0.001), but was negatively associated with the prevalence of overweight and obesity (P trend in logit < 0.001). Food-insecure children had lower fruits and vegetables consumption but were no more likely to be overweight or obese than their food-secure counterparts.