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Everyone knows you are what you eat
Well it turns out that Fruits & Vegetables are happier foods than you thought.
The University of Warwick in England and The Univerity of Queensland in Australia are about to publish a paper in the American Journal of Public Health stating exactly how they figured this out.
The study looked at 12,000 random people over several years. The participants kept food journals and were evaluated for happiness. Here is their announcement
Professor Andrew Oswald said:
“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.”
The more fruits and vegetables you ate the better you felt, up to 8 servings per day and the well being improvements were seen in the first 24 months.
Dr Redzo Mujcic, research fellow at the University of Queensland, said:
“Perhaps our results will be more effective than traditional messages in convincing people to have a healthy diet. There is a psychological payoff now from fruit and vegetables — not just a lower health risk decades later.”
I wonder which comes first
I just wonder if there are other traits that lead happier people to eat more fruits and vegetables and have a healthier diet in general.
The idea would be not fruits and vegetables lead to happiness but rather happier people tend to eat more fruits & veggies along with a better diet.
To me the end result is the same better diet = better life, it is just which comes first you are naturally happier so you eat better or do you eat better making you happier.
Either way it works, I am sure when the study is published more details will come to light.
The paper will be published here http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/
DOI: AJPH.2016.303260
The paper will also be downloadable here: www.andrewoswald.com
What do you think?
Do you think people can improve their happiness with fruits and vegetables?
Put any thoughts in the comments below.
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To the person who stole my Fitbit, let’s keep it up. We had a great July, now is not the time to lose momentum.
