Scientists at the Center for Healthy Brain Aging at the University of New South Wales in Australia discovered that eating fruits is associated with a lower risk of depression in people over the age of 45.
The Journal of Affective Disorders indicated that 7,801 volunteers who do not suffer from depression and who are over 45 years old participated in this study.
According to the magazine, at the beginning of the study, the researchers collected the necessary information about the health and condition of each volunteer and the proportion of fruits and vegetables in his diet using questionnaires. After that, I started following them for 9 years. During this period, researchers monitored 1,630 cases of depression.
The comparative analysis showed that the effect of vegetable consumption on the probability of contracting this disease was not statistically significant, but it became clear that a high proportion of fruit in the diet is clearly and closely linked to a high level of mental health.
Researchers believe that the reason is that vegetables are usually eaten cooked, which leads to the loss of many nutrients, while fruits are usually eaten fresh and raw, which allows obtaining all the antioxidants, vitamins, and dietary fiber necessary for brain health.