The graph illustrates the share of the UK population who ate fruit and vegetables five times per day between 2001 and 2008. Overall, there was an upward trend over the entire period for all categories; the figures for children and men increased sharply, while the share of women went up moderately.
The figure for children remained the lowest throughout the time frame. It started at roughly 12% in 2001, remained constant until 2003, and then grew at a steady rate to about 25% in 2007. The share of men had a similar trend, but in 2001 it was around 17%, had no changes over the next 2 years, and then it started to increase rapidly to nearly 27% in 2007. Both segments of the population suffered a slight decline over the last year in the graph.
In contrast, the percentage of women who ate five portions of fruit and vegetables in 2001 was the highest among the other categories. Over time, it increased gradually between 2001 and 2006, from roughly 21% to about 34%, while in the last two years, it declined by almost 3%, remaining the highest figure in 2008.
