Study Details The Link Between Anxiety Disorders And Vegetables

New research out of Canada highlights the link between poor diet and higher odds of experiencing anxiety. The work involved the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging, which revealed that people who ate less than three different sources of fruit and vegetables every day had much higher odds of developing an anxiety disorder. Inflammation may play a role in the experience of anxiety, according to the study, which notes some other factors that may also increase one's anxiousness.

The study comes out the University of Toronto, which found 24-percent higher odds of developing an anxiety disorder in people who ate less than three sources of fruit and vegetables daily. That figure was boosted to a massive 70-percent in people who had total body fat levels over 36-percent, according to the researchers.

Inflammation may be the common link between increased anxiety odds, fruit and vegetable intake, and body weight, according to the new study. Obesity is known to increase inflammation and higher consumption of fruit and vegetables is linked with lower inflammation levels. These aren't the only factors that may increase one's odds of developing an anxiety disorder, however.

The study also found that being single may increase anxiety levels compared to having a partner and that people living in poverty are also more likely to experience the condition. As well, someone suffering from at least three different health conditions was found to have substantially higher odds of anxiety compared to people who don't suffer from a chronic health issue.

Surprisingly, the study found that people who had immigrated to Canada experienced less anxiety than other Canadians, something possibly due to self-selection among those who immigrate. The research involved data on nearly 27,000 men and women, according to the researchers, who recently published their work in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.