An apple a day keeps you calm, happier and more energised

  • Fruit and vegetables can improve your state of mind

By
Daily Mail Reporter


PUBLISHED:

00:15 GMT, 24 January 2013


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UPDATED:

00:25 GMT, 24 January 2013

According to nutritional wisdom, an apple a day can help keep your body healthy. Now researchers say it can also improve your state of mind.

A team from the psychology department at the University of Otago in New Zealand asked 281 young people to complete a 21-day online food diary.

At the end of the trial period, those who ate plenty of fruit and vegetables reported feeling calmer, happier and more energised. Those who ate junk food reported no difference in mood.

Five-a-day: Eating daily servings of fruit and vegetable can not only improve your health but also your mind

Five-a-day: Eating daily servings of fruit and vegetable can not only improve your health but also your mind

Head researcher Dr Tamlin Conner said: ‘On days when people ate more fruits and vegetables, they reported feeling calmer, happier and more energetic than they normally did.’

‘After further analysis we demonstrated that young people would need to consume approximately seven to eight total servings of fruits and vegetables per day to notice a meaningful positive change.

One serving of fruit or vegetables is approximately the size that could fit in your palm, or half a cup.

Big portions: The study also found that young people would need to eat seven to eight servings a day to notice any significant change

Big portions: The study also found that young people would need to eat seven to eight servings a day to notice any significant change

To understand which comes first - feeling positive or eating healthier foods - Dr Conner and her team ran additional analyses and found that eating fruits and vegetables predicted improvements in positive mood the next day, suggesting that healthy foods may improve mood.

Dr Conner added: ‘While this research shows a promising connection between healthy foods and healthy moods, further research is necessary such as the development of randomised control trials evaluating the influence of high fruit and vegetable intake on mood and well-being.’

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