Smile, you’re on veggie camera! We’ve all heard that we’re supposed to eat more vegetables for good health but now there’s a study proving that eating veggies supports our emotional well being too. Apparently, their benefits go beyond the fiber and other key nutrients the body needs to do its best, there’s something very valuable in vegetables that provides “Vitamin H”- happiness!

According to a recent study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, scores from a measure of psychological well-being called the Subjective Happiness Score (SHS) were greater after increasing vegetable consumption to the level recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The study was conducted by researchers at the USDA Nutrition Research Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Folks in the eat-your-veggies study were aged 18 to 65 years and they were chosen because of their low habitual vegetable consumption. During the 8-week feeding study, volunteers were presented with an array of vegetables in the amounts recommended by the DGA. (More on that below so you can check the happiness of your current veggie consumption.)

A control group from the same “I don’t like to eat veggies” crowd, were not fed more vegetables but were given the same SHS testing. Yup, their happy scores were lower. ):

Nutrition History Is Made!

Who says reading a scientific journal article can’t t make you smile? The authors of the study write in their discussion, “The current study demonstrates for the first time that increasing vegetable consumption to meet DGA recommendations improves mean SHS scores.” (:

My favorite part of the research paper is the very last sentence encouraging nutrition educators to use these fun findings to bolster even further the benefits behind the mantra, “eat your vegetables!” They conclude, “Health care providers might consider providing patients with information regarding the potential benefits of vegetable consumption on pshychological well-being.”

So How Much for Happiness?

The DGA recommendation for consumption of vegetables to support good health is just 2 to 3 cups a day. Sadly, only one in ten Americans reach that daily goal. The participants in the Happy Veggie Study (my title not theirs) were provided with a variety of vegetables including fresh, frozen and minimally prepared and could choose from a list of 31 vegetables including a few vegetable juices. They were asked to mix it up and make sure they chose veggies in subgroups such as dark green, red and orange in amounts recommended. Eating a rainbow spectrum of colors, provides a spectrum of nutrients too.

Here’s a great guide to measure how happy your veggie life should be!!!