Research by scientists from the Department of Psychology at the University of Otago (New Zealand) has found that increased consumption of fruits and vegetables can improve psychological well-being in just 2 weeks.
Can eating fruits and vegetables improve mental health? To explore this extreme, the experts involved 171 students between the ages of 18 and 15 and divided them into three groups. One group continued their normal eating pattern as a control group; the second group received two additional servings of fresh fruits and vegetables (including carrots, kiwis, apples, and oranges) each day, while the remaining group received prepaid coupons and received text reminders about the importance of consuming more fruits and vegetables. The experiment lasted 2 weeks.
At the beginning and end of the study, participants underwent psychological evaluations that examined mood, vitality, motivation, symptoms of depression and anxiety, and other key factors in mental health and well-being.
After 2 weeks, the results showed that the group that had consumed more fruits and vegetables during this time ( an average of 3.7 servings per day ) experienced improvements in psychological well-being; Specifically, the positive effects surrounded increased vitality, increased motivation, and improved mood. The other groups did not experience any kind of psychological change.
The researchers say their findings indicate that increasing your intake of fruits and vegetables can lead to rapid benefits for psychological well-being , in as little as 2 weeks.
“This is the first study to show that providing quality fruits and vegetables to young adults can lead to short-term improvements in vitality or motivation. The findings provide initial validation of a causal relationship between fruits and vegetables and well-being. , which suggests that large-scale intervention studies are justified, “says Tamlin Conner, leader of the work.
The study has been published in the journal PloS One.
