To Your Heath from Pinnacle!
Researchers at the University of Warwick in
collaboration with the University of Queensland in Australia have confirmed
what mothers around the world have been telling their kids forever – eating
fruits and vegetables really is good for you.
And not only good for your health, but as a
surprising aspect of this new study, there are very real and measurable happiness benefits, too.
Benefits
of Antioxidants
We’ve long heard the accepted finding that
antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables can reduce the risk of cancer and
heart attacks - that’s not new. What is news is that this study is the first to
explore and quantify the psychological benefits.
Over a period of 24 months, people who changed
from a diet of no fruit and vegetables to one of eight portions a day,
experienced a positive change in their overall life satisfaction.
Study
Followed 12,000 People
The study used food diaries of randomly selected
people; over 12,000 of them. The
unexpected finding is that the benefits of incorporating fruits and vegetables
into diets, appearing as a sense of
well-being, seem to appear earlier than the medical benefits such as higher
resistance to cancer and heart attack; a couple of years versus a couple of
decades. Benefits from eating each extra daily portion,
up to 8 portions per day, of fruits and vegetables showed as a higher sense of
happiness.
Help for
the Western Diet
The Western Diet has long been viewed as
unhealthy, or at least less healthy. It
is expected that health professionals will cite this study to encourage even
more of their patients to add fruits and vegetables to their diets. Not just better health far in the future, but
feeling happier - the psychological reward – and that reward comes much sooner.
What’s Next?
Researchers will continue to probe, conducting
research into antioxidants. Current
research suggest links between carotenoid levels in the blood and optimism; imagine that!
What would Mum say?
Eat more fruits
and vegetables!
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