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First-year college students who have gardening experience eat more fruits and vegetables while they’re away at university, compared with peers who don’t have green thumbs, US researchers say. The research was published by Reuters on 26 December 2017
The more gardening experience the freshers had, the greater their intake of produce, the study also found. Those who had gardened both during childhood and more recently ate 20 percent more servings of fruits and vegetables than classmates who had never gardened.
“The first year of college represents a major shift in independence for many young adults,” said senior study author Anne Mathews of the University of Florida in Gainesville.
“Most are moving from a home where food is provided and a daily schedule is pretty well set … to a life where they are now in charge of every single decision about food throughout the day,” she told Reuters Health by email.
The students answered questionnaires about their fruit and vegetable intake and also about their gardening experience, including small potted plants such as herbs.