Is It Safe to Eat Only Fruits and Vegetables?
Updated on August 14, 2025
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You’ve been told your entire life to eat your fruits and veggies, but what would happen if you focused on these food groups exclusively? You can have too much of a good thing, especially when it comes to nutrition, where balance is key.
“A fruits and vegetables-only diet is a perfect example of eating only nutritious foods while still having an unhealthy diet,” says Keith Ayoob, RD, associate clinical professor emeritus at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. “It’s nutrient-rich but not nutrient-complete.”
While these foods are essential to a healthy diet, eating just fruits and vegetables daily is not safe for any length of time.
5 Risks of Only Eating Fruits and Vegetables
Although fruits and vegetables are healthy, they do not provide every nutrient your body needs. “It's inevitably going to be unbalanced because it's missing entire food groups,” Ayoob says.
1. Insufficient Caloric Intake
In the short-term, you may feel uncomfortably full, but still hungry. “Most fruits and vegetables are low in calories and high in volume, due to their fiber and water content,” says Avery Zenker, RD, a registered dietitian in the Toronto, Ontario area. “That means you’d need to eat a very large volume to meet daily energy needs, which isn’t always realistic.”
In the long-term, a lack of calories can lead to malnutrition, excessive weight loss, and muscle mass loss, Zenker says.
2. Gas and Bloating
If you’re eating just fruits and vegetables, you’ll find yourself consuming a high volume just to feel full. Zenker says this significant increase in volume and fiber may cause digestive woes like excessive bloating, gas, diarrhea, or abdominal cramps when you start your fruits and veggies-only diet.
“In the long-term, if the gut doesn’t adapt to the increase in fiber, digestive symptoms could continue,” Zenker says.
Plus, many fruits and vegetables are high in FODMAPs (fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols). Eating high amounts of these fermentable carbohydrates can increase digestive symptoms, particularly in people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Zenker says.
3. Lack of Protein
Only eating fruits and vegetables means your diet will lack protein, a key component of nutrition. “Without enough protein, you're unable to properly repair and build muscle,” Ayoob says.
Eating more protein in midlife may contribute to better health decades later, with lower odds of major chronic diseases, mental health concerns, and problems with memory or physical function, according to a review published in February 2024 in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Specifically, for every 3 percent increase in calories from protein, researchers found a 5 percent higher odds of healthy aging. Researchers also found that the chances of healthy aging increased by 31 percent for every 3 percent increase in calories from plant proteins.
However, most fruits and vegetables aren’t significantly high in protein, unless you’re including plant-based foods like beans and legumes in the mix, Zenker says.
“Without adequate intake, the body starts breaking down muscle to supply amino acids, leading to health problems including weakness, impaired recovery from injury, and lower immune resilience,” Zenker says.
4. Iron Deficiency
Plant sources only have non-heme iron, which your body absorbs in much smaller amounts than heme iron that’s found in animal sources.
“Lack of iron can be a concern, particularly for menstruating women, athletes, and growing children,” Zenker says. “Long-term iron inadequacy can lead to anemia, fatigue, hair loss, decreased stamina, and impaired cognition.”
Iron-deficiency anemia is the most common nutrient deficiency globally, affecting 30 percent of people. Poor diet often is the cause, and it can lead to inflammatory conditions like chronic kidney disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and heart failure.
5. Lack of Other Key Nutrients
Omega-3s (a type of healthy fat) are not present in fruits and vegetables in their long-chain forms — eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), Zenker says. Instead, they primarily contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), according to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Your body can convert some ALA into EPA and DHA, but usually only small amounts. Cold-water fatty fish is the richest source of EPA and DHA.
“Low EPA and DHA over time is linked to problems such as higher inflammation, mood disorders, and increased cardiovascular risk,” Zenker says. Omega-3-rich foods may help lower the risk of chronic health conditions, including heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, certain cancers, preterm birth, and depression.
Only eating fruits and vegetables could also lead to other deficiencies, Zenker says. For example, she says, having too little calcium, vitamin D, and protein may accelerate bone loss and increase fracture risk. Meanwhile, she says missing nutrients like vitamin B12, iron, zinc, and omega-3 fats impair energy production, brain function, and nerve health.
Why It’s Not Recommended to Eat Only Fruits and Vegetables Long-Term
Experts encourage higher consumption of fruits and vegetables in most cases, but these foods shouldn’t be your exclusive diet.
“A good diet is made up of more than nutritious foods,” Ayoob says. “Balance is the foundation and first requirement of any eating style you choose.”
Well-studied healthy diets include the Mediterranean diet, DASH diet, and MIND diet, all of which emphasize variety and balanced nutrition. Compared with the typical Western diet, they are higher in plant-based foods like fruits and vegetables, but also whole grains, legumes, seeds, and nuts (and lower in red and processed meats). Research suggests these diets may help support overall health and lower the risk of chronic conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure, metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers.
The Takeaway
- While fruits and vegetables are healthy, it’s dangerous to eat them exclusively without any other food groups.
- Only eating fruits and vegetables can lead to deficiencies in iron, protein, and other key nutrients.
- It can also lead to insufficient calorie intake, alongside unpleasant side effects, including gas and bloating.
- Always talk to your healthcare provider before making any major changes to your diet, especially if you have any health conditions.
EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
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- Iron. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. March 2023.
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- Omega-3 Fatty Acids. National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. July 18, 2022.
- LeWine HE. Fish Oil: Friend or Foe? Harvard Health Publishing. July 24, 2024.
- Ciesielski TH et al. Global Access to Uncontaminated Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Requires Attention. AJPM Focus. August 2025.
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Meet Our Experts
Tara Collingwood, RDN
Medical Reviewer
Tara Collingwood, RDN, is a board-certified specialist in sports dietetics, an American College of Sports Medicine–certified personal trainer, and a media spokesperson. As a sports dietitian, she has worked with the U.S. Tennis Association, the Orlando Magic, World Wrestling Entertainment, runDisney, the University of Central Florida, and numerous professional and amateur athletes. Collingwood is the author of Pregnancy Cooking and Nutrition for Dummies and a coauthor of the Flat Belly Cookbook for Dummies.
She appears regularly on national and local TV, and speaks around the world to business teams on how to manage energy physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. She previously served as a national spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Collingwood double-majored in dietetics as well as nutrition, fitness, and health at Purdue University and earned a master's degree in health promotion from Purdue University.
Jessica Bruso
Author
Based in Massachusetts, Jessica Bruso has been writing since 2008. She holds a master of science degree in food policy and applied nutrition and a bachelor of arts degree in international relations, both from Tufts University.