Dietary intake of fruits and vegetables, polyunsaturated fats, and fish and positive psychological well-being in older adults: A cross-sectional analysis of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA).

Authors

Pepper Thanaporn Theeraoat, Ruth A Hackett, Joseph Chilcot, Andrew Steptoe

Published in

British journal of health psychology. Volume 30. Issue 3. Pages e70022.

Abstract

Research has linked diet to negative psychological states, but its influence on positive psychological well-being remains understudied. This study assessed the association between dietary intake of fruits and vegetables (F&V), polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs), and fish on three domains of positive well-being: eudemonic, happiness, and life satisfaction in middle-aged and older adults.
A cross-sectional analytical sample of 3013 participants from Wave 9 (2018/19) of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA).
Multivariate linear regression assessed the association between diet and positive psychological well-being, adjusted for covariates including total energy intake, age, gender, ethnicity, wealth, education, living alone, social isolation, limiting long-standing illness, and depressive symptoms.
In minimally adjusted models, F&V and fish intake were positively associated with all three domains of well-being, while PUFAs intake was positively associated with eudemonic well-being and happiness, but not life satisfaction. The positive associations between F&V intake and eudemonic well-being, and between fish intake and happiness, remained significant in all models (β = .043, 95% CI [.037, .212], p = .005; β = .033, 95% CI [.011, .243], p = .032, respectively), whereas others became non-significant after adjusting for certain covariates.
Diet may be associated with positive psychological well-being in middle-aged and older adults. Increasing dietary intake of F&V, PUFAs, and fish could support well-being and may be encouraged through public or private initiatives aimed at making healthy diets accessible and affordable. Longitudinal studies are needed to clarify the influence of diet on well-being over time.

PMID:
40948110
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 15 Sep 2025.

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