Objective: Epidemiological evidence between consumption of fruit and vegetable and depressive symptoms in late life is limited and inconsistent, especially in Asian populations. We examined this association in a prospective Asian cohort.
Methods: We used data from 16,571 participants of the Singapore Chinese Health Study. The consumption of fruits and vegetables was assessed using a validated 165-item food-frequency questionnaire at baseline (1993-1998), when participants were aged 43-74 years (mean age 53.0 years). Fruits were further classified according to climate of growth (temperate, subtropical, and tropical), or glycemic index value (low, moderate, and high). After a mean follow-up of 20 years, depressive symptoms were evaluated using Geriatric Depression Scale during the third follow-up interviews (2014-2016), when participants were aged 61-96 years (mean age 73.2 years). Multivariable logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).
Results: Depressive symptoms were identified among 4372 participants. Consumption of fruits, but not vegetables, was inversely associated with depressive symptoms in a dose-response manner: comparing extreme quartiles, the OR (95% CI) of depressive symptoms was 0.74 (0.66-0.82; P-trend <0.001) for fruits and 0.95 (0.85-1.07; P-trend =0.49) for vegetables consumption. The significantly inverse associations were observed in all subgroups of fruits by glycemic index values. However, in grouping by climate, consumption of subtropical and tropical fruit, but not of temperate fruit, was associated with lower risk of depressive symptoms. Conclusions: Higher midlife consumption of fruits, but not vegetables, was associated with a significantly lower risk of depressive symptoms in late life. Authors:
Huiqi Li, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Woon Puay Koh, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Yiqiang Chua, National Univeristy of Singapore, Singapore

About the Presenter(s)
Huiqi Li is a doctoral student in Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National Univeristy of Singapore. Her research is focused on investigating the contribution of modifiable factors (diet/lifestyle) to the development of depression in late life.

Connect on Linkedin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/huiqi-li-b93703267

Connect on ResearchGate
http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Huiqi-Li-10

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