Vegetable

Vegetables are parts of plants that are eaten by humans as food as part of a meal. This meaning is often used: it is applied to plants to mean all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, leaves, roots, and seeds.^[1][2][3]

Carrots and potatoes are parts of the root of the plants, but since they are eaten by humans, they are vegetables. They are not in the same category as a fruit, nut, herb, spice, or grain. Tomatoes are often thought of as vegetables, but because they have seeds, they are, botanically, fruits. Vegetables are an important part of people's diet. Vegetables and fruits are sometimes called produce. Vegetables have vitamins A, B, C, D, minerals and carbohydrates.

The USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating five to nine servings of fruit and vegetables everyday. The total amount eaten varies depending on age and gender.^[4]

1. ↑ Harper, Douglas. Vegetable. Online Etymology Dictionary
2. ↑ Dictionary.com: Vegetable
3. ↑ Ayto, John (1991). Dictionary of Word Origins (paperback). Arcade Pub. ISBN 9781559702140. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
4. ↑ "Fabulous fruits... versatile vegetables" (PDF). 2013-12-07. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-12-07. Retrieved 2021-05-12.