A new study reveals that if people simply ate more vegetables, the Federal Government could save $100 million dollars a year on health costs. Horticulture Innovation Australia commissioned the study which found more than 90 per cent of Australians did not eat the recommended five servings of vegetables a day.
Lynne Pezzullo, lead partner of health economics from Deloitte Access Economics, said that men tended to eat fewer vegetables than women.
Ms Pezzullo said looking at the cost of health care and its relation to vegetable consumption was a new tactic for the vegetable industry.
"Some vegetables do contain things like antioxidants and potassium, and those kinds of things, along with others, can do things like block some carcinogens and they can also help prevent the hardening of the arteries," she said.
Ms Pezzullo said the modelling done by Deloitte showed that if vegetable consumption rose 10 per cent, there would be a $100 million saving to government in the form of reduced medical treatment and procedures.
"If there was a jump in consumption from 174 grams per day — which is the average at the moment — to 190 grams, that would result in $100 million in health expenditure savings," she said.
