Eat your fruits and veggies!

Tiffany Davidson

10-9-21

A study published September 2021 in the UK found that children who ate more fruits and vegetables had better mental health states. The study was done at The University of East Anglia where they took the data from 9000 children from 59 schools.

The research team found that only around ¼ of secondary school children and 28% of primary school children reported eating the recommended 5 fruits and vegetables a day and about 1 in ten children were not eating any.

The study found that eating well was associated with better mental well being in children. Among secondary school children especially there was a strong link between eating healthy and having a better well-being.

From the study:

Children involved in the study self-reported their dietary choices and took part in age appropriate tests of mental well-being that covered cheerfulness, relaxation, and having good interpersonal relationships.

Also of note was that nutrition had as much or more of an impact on well-being as factors such as witnessing regular violence at home.

"As a potentially modifiable factor at an individual and societal level,

nutrition represents an important public health target for strategies to

address childhood mental wellbeing

Welch, Lead Researcher

References

University of East Anglia. (2021, September 28). Children who eat more fruit and veggies have better mental health. ScienceDaily. Retrieved October 4, 2021, from https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/09/210928075004.htm.