DEEP FRYING FATTENING VEGGIE DIET.

Byline: Lee Condon Daily News Staff Writer

Americans are eating more fruits and vegetables than they did 25 years ago but the increase is mostly in potatoes - fried potatoes, according to a national study released Wednesday.

And that is a problem because a fried potato a day won't keep the doctor away, the researchers said.

``I count french fries as a vegetable,'' said Dr. Susan M. Krebs-Smith, author of the report that appears today in the American Cancer Society's journal Cancer. ``Some people laugh at that, but we fry a lot of vegetables.''

Too many, the study found.

Potatoes account for half of all vegetables Americans are eating, and half of the potatoes end up being eaten as french fries, Krebs-Smith said. She said it shows just how fast-food dependent the nation has become.

Tomatoes are the second most popular vegetable and, especially when cooked, are valuable in preventing prostate cancer in men.

While frying vegetables doesn't necessarily diminish nutritional benefits, it adds grease to diets that already are too laden with fat, she said.

What's more, the potato is not the best vegetable in terms of nutrition or cancer prevention. In fact, Krebs-Smith said the American Institute of Cancer Research has even suggested that the potato lose its designation as a vegetable because it contains so much starch.

Ron Rosalez, a Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., resident who works for Disney in Glendale, said he'd like to lose weight but frequently finds himself eating fast food.

``This is quick and easy, especially when you only have half an hour for lunch,'' said Rosalez, 33. ``Fruits and vegetables just aren't as accessible as french fries. On most people's work schedules, I think the government's goals are hard to meet.''

In fact, Americans are barely meeting government recommendations for eating fruits and vegetables daily, the study found.

``We've made some progress, but we're certainly not there yet,'' said Gloria Stables, director of the Five a Day For Better Health program sponsored by the National Cancer Institute.

Researchers found that between 1970 and 1995, Americans consumed 19 percent more vegetables, 22 percent more fruit and 47 percent more grain products.

Government guidelines call for at least three to five servings of vegetables a day and two to four servings of fruit. The study said that in 1994 - the latest year for which figures are available - Americans averaged 3.6 servings of vegetables and 1.5 servings of fruit a day.

Krebs-Smith, a researcher for the National Cancer Institute, notes that these are minimum recommendations for reducing cancer risk.

She said the recommendation to eat five servings of fruits and vegetables daily is for people who consume only small quantities of food on low-calorie diets.

``For most people, the recommendations would be higher than that,'' Krebs-Smith said, noting that most people should be eating seven or eight servings of vegetables and fruits a day to reduce the risk for colon, rectal, breast and prostate cancer.

While fruit and vegetable consumption may be up nationwide, the state's Department of Health Services reported that it has slipped among adults in California - back to 1989 levels.

``We think people are buying fruits and vegetables, but they're not eating them,'' said Jennifer Gregson, a senior research associate for the department's Research and Nutrition Section.

Maybe they don't have time.

``We're definitely a fast-food society,'' said Ummat Muhammad, a 22-year-old Pasadena man who was dining at McDonald's in Glendale.

Muhammad said he and his family have tried to eat more fruits, vegetables and grains since his father, although a nonsmoker, died of lung cancer seven years ago at the age of 40.

``The doctors said it had a lot to do with his eating habits,'' Muhammad said.

Muhammad eats most of his fruits and vegetables at dinner and usually avoids eating meat. Still he says there is definitely room for improvement - as at lunch.

``I'm cheating right now,'' Muhammad said as he ate the last of his french fries.

NUTRITION AT A GLANCE

Some findings in a study on American eating habits and cancer risk:

From 1970 to 1994, Americans increased their intake of vegetables by 19 percent, fruits by 22 percent and grain products by 47 percent.

Fruit consumption, which averaged 1.5 servings a day in 1994, will need to rise to meet the minimum dietary recommendations of two servings a day.

Vegetable consumption, which averaged 3.6 servings a day in 1994, is only slightly higher than the minimum standard of three servings a day on a low-calorie diet.

Alcohol intake has slightly decreased. The 1993 level of 2.25 gallons per person per year was the lowest since 1964. The government's dietary objective is to lower it to 2 gallons per person per year by 2000.

SOURCE: Cancer journal via Associated Press 

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Box: Nutrition at a glance (see text)