Abstract
Background
The role of higher intake of fruit and vegetables has been of particular interest as a novel approach to reduce the risk of depressive symptoms. This study examined the association between fruit and vegetable intake and depressive symptoms in the 1973-78 cohort in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health.
Methods
A total of 4241 women with a mean age of 27.6 (SD 1.5) years were followed up at five surveys over 15 years starting from 2003. The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression-10 scale with a cut off > 10 indicated depressive symptoms. Fruit and vegetable intake was assessed using short questions. Multiple imputations with generalised estimating equations models were performed to estimate odds ratio of depressive symptoms according to fruit and vegetable intake.
Results
Fruit and vegetables were cross-sectionally associated with reduced odds of depressive symptoms. In longitudinal analysis, higher intake of fruit (> 4 servings) and vegetable (> 5 servings) was consistently associated with a reduced odds of depressive symptoms, with a 25% reduced odds (OR 0.75; 95% CI 0.57, 0.98, p = 0.032) and a 19% reduced odds (OR 0.81; 95% CI 0.70, 0.94, p = 0.008) respectively.
Conclusions
These findings suggest that a higher intake of fruit and vegetables was associated with a lower risk of depression symptoms over 15 years from a population-based prospective study of Australian women.
Key messages
Increasing intake of fruit and vegetables in the younger population may be a promising approach to reducing the risk of depressive symptoms in the long run.
Insufficient Fruit and Vegetable Intake in a Low- and Middle-Income Setting: A Population-Based Survey in Semi-Urban Tanzania
