Eating bright-coloured fruits helps women live longer: Study

A new study by the University of Georgia has found that eating more bright colour fruits can help women live a longer life.

Women often have greater rates of sickness while living longer on average than males. However, a healthier diet, rich in pigmented carotenoids, such as those found in yams, kale, spinach, watermelon, bell peppers, tomatoes, oranges, and carrots, is now suggested by a recent study from the University of Georgia as a way to reduce these greater incidences of sickness. This colourful produce has a crucial role in minimising cognitive and visual decline.

Billy R. Hammond, a professor in UGA's Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of psychology behavioural and brain sciences programme and co-author of the study, said: "The idea is that men get a lot of the diseases that tend to kill you, but women get those diseases less often or later so they persevere but with illnesses that are debilitating. For instance, two-thirds of all macular degeneration and dementia cases in the world today are in women. These illnesses, from which women suffer for years, are the ones that may be prevented via lifestyle changes."

Even after accounting for variations in longevity, the study showed that women experience a number of degenerative disorders at significantly greater rates than males, including autoimmune diseases and dementia. "If you include all autoimmune illnesses, women make up about 80% of the population. Women thus require more preventative care due to their sensitivity, which is directly related to biology "said Hammond.

The way women retain vitamins and minerals in their bodies is one of the factors contributing to this sensitivity. Women often have more body fat than males, according to Hammond. Many dietary vitamins and minerals are significantly absorbed by body fat, which provides pregnant women with a helpful reserve. But because there is less available for the retina and the brain, women are more likely to experience degenerative issues.

Pigmented carotenoids in the human diet serve as antioxidants. These pigment are responsible for the bright colours of certain fruits and vegetables. Besides this, Lutein and Zeaxanthin, two distinct carotenoids present in certain tissues of the eye and brain, have been demonstrated to directly ameliorate central nervous system degeneration.

Men and women consume roughly the same amounts of these carotenoids, but women have substantially greater needs, according to Hammond. Generally speaking, there are no guidelines for men or women for dietary elements that are not directly related to deficient diseases (such as vitamin C and scurvy), according to Hammond. Part of the article's thesis is that suggestions should be revised to make women more conscious of their vulnerabilities and encourage them to take proactive steps to address them before they become issues later in life.

Supplements containing carotenoids are also available, and the National Institutes of Health's National Eye Institute programme has concentrated resources on certain carotenoids. Additionally, Hammond said that ingesting lutein and zeaxanthin through food is a far superior method to using pills to increase consumption.

"Dietary factors affect the brain, affecting everything from personality to how we view ourselves. People may not fully comprehend the enormous impact eating has on their core identity, mood, and even predisposition for rage "said Hammond. The microbiome and the bacteria in your gut are now included in this, as they all contribute to the development of our brain's structural elements and the neurotransmitters that control how it functions. (ANI)