Stressed Out? Grab A Celery Stick...No Really.

At the 2017 Experimental Biology meeting in Washington, a study was presented that had researched four years of data (2011-2014), from the NHANES (National Health & Nutrition Examination Survey), which showed individuals who encorporated frozen fruits & vegetables into their diet had many health benefits.

Compared to those who do not consume frozen fruits and vegetables, those who did:

- had greater overall intake of potassium, calium and fiber which are all key nutrients.

- had a higher consumption of fruit & vegetable servings in their daily diet

- Higher intake of Vitamin A & D, potassium, dietary fiber and calcium

- lower BMIs were also recorded for those who consumed frozen fruits and vegetables (ImperfectlyAwesome does not believe BMI is a true measurement of health...but that's another story)

Dr. Maureen Storey, Ph.D was quoted by the Decclan Chronicle as stating this study confirmed what nutritionists and the medical profession has been saying for years yet still Americans are only eating approximately half the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables." Dr. Storey's research shows evidence that eating frozen fruits and vegetables can help fill the gap in fruit and vegetable consumption."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs) define calcium, potassium, dietary fiber and vitamin D as nutrients of public health concern because low intakes are associated with health concerns.

Specifically, the guidelines attribute low intake of fiber and potassium to decreased fruit and vegetable consumption.

STRESS REDUCTION- GRAB AN APPLE OR CARROT

Reasearchers down under at the University of Sydney have stated getting your daily recommended intake of fruit and vegetables can clower your stress level by at least 14%. Individuals who ate fewer servings (3-4 servings) had a 12 % lower stress than a person who consumed zero or only one serving a day.

Fruits and vegetables also had greater stress relieving properties for women then for men.

So ladies if you are starting to feel stressed head to the fridge and instead of grabbing the last of the brownies from family game night and reach for a celery stick or bowl of blueberries and feel the stress melt away and give your physical body a boost of vitamins to get you through the day.