Taiwanese high school students eat fewer fruits and vegetables than their counterparts in other countries in the western Pacific, according to the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) Wednesday.
The HPA said that in the Global School-based Student Health Survey, just 17.5 percent of junior high students daily absorbed "5 a Day" -- at least three vegetables and two fruits daily -- while even fewer senior high students got their fruit and vegetable fix at just 10.6 percent.
The numbers put Taiwan 11th out of 13 countries in the survey.
The HPA participated in the Student Health Survey along with the Global Youth Tobacco Survey to identify health habits of young people in Taiwan. The two surveys were designed by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
As for smoking habits, Taiwanese youngsters came in fifth out of the 13 countries.
The Youth Tobacco Survey showed that smoking prevalence rises with age, as only 5.2 percent of junior high schoolers said they smoked but 11.9 percent of senior high schoolers said they do, according to Hurng Baai-shyun, the head of the HPA's Surveillance and Research Division.
Both surveys were conducted among high school students between 2012 and 2013.
The HPA will continue to promote maintaining healthy weight through exercise and diet, Director Chiu Shu-ti said.
