Mind Your Fruits & Veggies

Essential for body systems involved in physical health, consuming ample amounts of fruits and vegetables may also factor into mental well-being.  Saverio Stranges, from University of Warwick Medical School (United Kingdom), and colleagues analyzed data collected on 13,983 adults enrolled in the Health Survey for England 2010-2011. Over one in every three (33.5%) of subjects with high mental wellbeing ate five or more portions of fruit and vegetables a day, compared with only 6.8% who ate less than one portion.  As well, 31.4% of those with high mental wellbeing ate three to four portions of fruits and veggies daily, and 28.4% ate one to two. The study authors report that: “Along with smoking, fruit and vegetable consumption was the health-related behaviour most consistently associated with mental well-being in both sexes.”