Fruit intake may help with depression, study finds. But eating it isn't a mental health magic bullet.
Fruits are considered an important part of a healthy diet, but new research suggests they may also help to boost your mental health in the future.
The study, which was published in the Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging, analyzed population-based data from nearly 14,000 people who participated in the Singapore Chinese Health Study, which tracked participants from their midlife — which is usually defined as 40 to 65 — to about 20 years later. The researchers found that people who ate higher levels of fruits in midlife had a lowered risk of developing symptoms of depression as they got older.
Specifically, people who had at least three servings of fruit a day had a 21% lower risk of developing age-related depression compared with those who had one daily serving of fruit. Eating vegetables, however, showed no link to a lowered risk of developing age-related depression.
“Our findings support population-based recommendations of having sufficient fruit intake early in life to reduce the likelihood of depressive symptoms in late life,” the researchers concluded in the study.
Depression is a common problem in older adults, according to the National Institute on Aging (NIA). While most older adults are not depressed, they are at an increased risk due to the higher odds of having a chronic health condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Is eating more fruit the answer? Experts break it down.
Why might eating fruit lower your risk of developing depression?
Depression is a complicated condition, and it’s difficult to say that eating fruit alone will lower your risk of developing depression. “There seems to be a lot of unanswered questions for this study,” Hillary Ammon, a clinical psychologist at the Center for Anxiety & Women’s Emotional Wellness, tells Yahoo Life. “Specifically, were there other factors that could have contributed to decreased levels of depression later in life?”
Ammon stresses that correlation does not equal causation. “Meaning, just because this cohort of individuals ate fruit does not mean that the fruit intake decreased the likelihood of depression later in life,” she says. Still, there does seem to be an association.
The reason is a little trickier to figure out, but there are a few theories. “There could be a few things going on,” registered dietitian Jessica Cording, author of The Little Book of Game-Changers: 50 Healthy Habits for Managing Stress & Anxiety, tells Yahoo Life. One is that fruits have high levels of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, like carotenoids, flavonoids and vitamin C. “We have research showing that various antioxidants play a role in helping our bodies be more resilient against stress,” she says.
Depression also has an inflammatory aspect, and tamping down on inflammation in the body may help minimize depressive symptoms, Cording says.
The relationship may also be indirect, Cording says. She points out that highly processed foods are linked with a higher risk of depression. One research letter published in JAMA Network Open, for example, analyzed data on eating habits and mental health in more than 31,000 women. Researchers discovered that participants who ate the most ultra-processed food (nine servings a day) were 50% more likely to develop depression than participants who ate the least, or no more than four servings daily.
“If someone is in the habit of eating fruits and other nutrient-dense foods, they may crowd out highly processed foods that are associated with depressive symptoms, supporting good mental health in the process,” Cording says.
Thea Gallagher, a clinical assistant professor at NYU Langone Health and a co-host of the Mind in View podcast, tells Yahoo Life that it’s “interesting” to try to find a link between certain foods and mental health benefits. “It’s exciting that we are looking at things like eating and mental health, looking at all of the factors that lead to whole health,” she says.
“It’s another incentive to eat well,” Gallagher says. “There is a focus on shape and weight with eating healthy, but it’s more than that — it’s about overall health and mental well-being.”
But there are a lot of questions raised by this most recent study that aren’t answered. “We need more research to better understand the connection,” Cording says.
Which fruits may help?
The researchers studied 14 fruits and found that these had the strongest link with a lowered risk of developing depression:
Oranges
Tangerines
Bananas
Papayas
Watermelon
Apples
Honeydew melon
Worth noting: The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends having four servings of fruit and five servings of vegetables each day.
How to get more fruit in your life
Again, depression is a complicated condition, and Gallagher says it’s important to underscore that eating fruit alone is unlikely to alter your mental health status if you’re struggling with depression. “We don’t want to be simplistic by saying that if you eat fruits and vegetables, you won’t be depressed anymore, or if you didn’t eat them, that’s why you’re depressed,” Gallagher says.
But Gallagher points out that there’s no harm in trying to eat more fruit. If you want to add more produce to your life, there are a few things you can do. For at least two of your meals a day, fill half of your plate with non-starchy vegetables, Cording says. “I tend to recommend having fruit occupy a smaller space on the plate,” she says, noting that she encourages people to “treat it as their carb for the meal.”
“If adding a little fruit makes the meal palatable and enjoyable and makes someone more likely to eat those veggies, there is room for fruit,” she says. When you have fruit, Cording suggests pairing it with protein and/or fat too. “This is to support stable blood sugar, which is also good for physical, mental and emotional health,” she says. Consider having a banana with nut butter, or an apple with a small wedge of cheese or handful of nuts.
Ultimately, Cording says it’s best to “incorporate some kind of nutrient-dense produce into each of your meals.”
If fruit isn’t your thing, Ammon says you shouldn’t panic. “Just because you’re not eating fruit does not mean you are guaranteed to become depressed later in life,” she says. “Yes, a balanced diet and exercise can help with improved mood and improved physical and mental health, but many other factors play a role in satisfaction with life — connection to your community and family, completing meaningful work and engaging in enjoyable hobbies, to name a few.”
