How much do you know about nutrition? If your knowledge is similar to that of food shoppers who answered three surveys for the U. S. Food and Drug Administration, then you probably share some wide-spread misinformation about nutrition. Check your answers to the following statements. Is it true or false?

　　Statement 1: Fresh vegetables cooked at home are always more nutritious than canned or frozen vegetables.False. The nutritional difference depends more on how vegetables are handled or prepared than in whether they are bought fresh or packaged. Overcooking, for example, destroys many nutrients. Vegetables cooked in too much water can lose a significant amount of vitamins.

　　Statement 2: When dieting, avoid starchy(淀粉類)foods, such as bread or potatoes. False. If you cut out starchy foods, such as peas, potatoes, bread, and rice, you cut out very good sources of several B vitamins, Vitamin C, and other nutrients. Moreover, ounce for ounce, bread and potatoes have fewer calories than sirloin steak and roast beef.

　　Statement 3: Taking extra vitamins beyond the recommended daily allowances won’t give you more energy. True. It’s widely believed that extra vitamins provide more energy. But taking more than the body needs doesn’t make it function better, just as overfilling your gas tank doesn’t make your car run faster.

　　If you answered these questions correctly, you can for the time being consider yourself well informed about food and nutrition by today’s standards. But remember that nutrition is a complex and growing science and that today’s beliefs may be changed as new information becomes available.