Eating Fruits and Veggies Can Boost Your Mood

Everyone knows an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but scientists are now 

claiming that a couple apples a day might keep you smiling all day. It comes as 

no surprise that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables promotes a healthy body, but 

a recent study from the University of Warwick, England and the University of 

Queensland, Australia finds that eating fruits and vegetables also contributes to 

one’s personal happiness.

This is the first study of its kind to look at the short-term psychological effects of 

food rather than its long-term physical effects.The study looked at 12,000 

patients through the examination of their thorough food diaries, which also 

documented their mental wellness, during 2007, 2009, and 2013.

The diaries revealed that for each added serving of fruits and vegetables—up to 

8 portions per day—the subject’s mood was boosted. The improvement in 

happiness in some cases was equivalent to that of an individual who has gone 

from unemployment to employment.

"Eating fruit and vegetables apparently boosts our happiness far more quickly 

than it improves human health. People's motivation to eat healthy food is 

weakened by the fact that physical-health benefits, such as protecting against 

cancer, accrue decades later. However, well-being improvements from 

increased consumption of fruit and vegetables are closer to immediate."

Researchers are hopeful that the outcomes of this study will be more effective 

in persuading individuals to consume healthier diets because there is a 

potentially immediate, psychological payoff. Scientists believe that there is 

further research surrounding these findings that needs to be done in order to 

better understand how fruits and vegetables improve one’s mood.