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Association between consumption of fruits and vegetables in midlife and depressive symptoms in late life: the Singapore Chinese Health Study
Li et al. (2024) study’s objective was to examine, in an Asian cohort, the relationship between midlife fruit and vegetable consumption and the probability of developing depression symptoms later in life. While previous epidemiological evidence on this topic has been limited and sometimes controversial, this study sought to clarify the issue using data from the Singapore Chinese Health Study. This research was a prospective cohort study based on a population of Singaporean Chinese individuals. Participants (n = 13738) were between 45 and 74 years of age at baseline (1993–1998, mean age 52.4 years). A validated 165-item food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was used to measure the intake of fruits (n = 14) and vegetables (n = 25). The Geriatric Depression Scale was used to assess depressive symptoms during the third follow-up interview, which took place between 2014 and 2016, considering a score of ≥5 out of 15 to be indicative of depression. 3,180 individuals had depressive symptoms over the mean follow-up period of 19.6 years. Regarding fruit consumption, a lower risk of depressive symptoms was associated with consuming several fruits, including tangerine, orange, banana, watermelon and papaya. This impact was true for all fruit subgroups based on glycemic index. Vegetable Consumption: There was no discernible link between eating vegetables and the probability of experiencing depressed symptoms. The results back up the suggestion that eating enough fruit in midlife might help lower the risk of developing depression symptoms later in life. The study did not, however, discover any connection between eating vegetables and symptoms of depression. This suggests that fruit consumption may play a more crucial role in mental health, particularly in older age. [NPID: Fruit, vegetable, depression, cohort study, Asian]
Year: 2024
