Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
http://hdl.handle.net/1893/10167
Appears in Collections: | Economics Working Papers |
Peer Review Status: | Refereed |
Title: | Is Psychological Well-being Linked to the Consumption of Fruit and Vegetables? |
Author(s): | Blanchflower, David Oswald, Andrew J Stewart-Brown, Sarah |
Contact Email: | david.blanchflower@stir.ac.uk |
Citation: | Blanchflower D, Oswald AJ & Stewart-Brown S (2012) Is Psychological Well-being Linked to the Consumption of Fruit and Vegetables?. NBER Working Paper, 18469. National Bureau of Economic Research. |
Issue Date: | Oct-2012 |
Publisher: | National Bureau of Economic Research |
Series/Report no.: | NBER Working Paper, 18469 |
Abstract: | Humans run on a fuel called food. Yet economists and other social scientists rarely study what people eat. We provide simple evidence consistent with the existence of a link between the consumption of fruit and vegetables and high well-being. In cross-sectional data, happiness and mental health rise in an approximately dose-response way with the number of daily portions of fruit and vegetables. The pattern is remarkably robust to adjustment for a large number of other demographic, social and economic variables. Well-being peaks at approximately 7 portions per day. We document this relationship in three data sets, covering approximately 80,000 randomly selected British individuals, and for seven measures of well-being (life satisfaction, WEMWBS mental well-being, GHQ mental disorders, self-reported health, happiness, nervousness, and feeling low). Reverse causality and problems of confounding remain possible. We discuss the strengths and weaknesses of our analysis, how government policy-makers might wish to react to it, and what kinds of further research -- especially randomized trials -- would be valuable. |
Type: | Working or Discussion Paper |
URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/1893/10167 |
URL: | http://www.nber.org/papers/w18469.pdf?new_window=1 |
Rights: | Author holds copyright. |
Affiliation: | Economics University of Warwick University of Warwick |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format | |
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Blanchflower_2012_Is_Psychological_Well-being_Linked_to_the_Consumption_of_Fruit_and_Vegetables.pdf | 213.48 kB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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