After a review of the present literature available on the research behind the effect of healthier eating habits on increasing the well being of individuals, it can be inferred that there is a link between these variables. In a study conducted by the University of Otago, they found that providing young adults, defined as people 18-25 years of age, with high quality fruits and vegetables results in improvements in psychological well-being in the short term (Conner et al., 2017). This study was conducted over a 2-week period so the ability to give longitudinal results was not definitively provable but is highly likely. As well, we can look to a study done by a survey conducted in Korea where the data collected suggests that even at a younger age, middle and high school student age, a high intake of healthier foods such as fruits, vegetables, and milk linked to better perceived health and well-being (Park, et al., 2018). Another issue that may arise when looking towards improving eating habits to improve wellbeing is that when offering healthier options there would be the issue of overeating and self-regulation. In a study conducted by Yann Cornil and Pierre Chandon about the pleasure as an ally of healthy eating there is evidence that taking an Epicurean approach to introducing foods can lead to lowering the visceral aversion to healthier foods. Their study focuses on how “visceral” food pleasure vs “Epicurean” food pleasure affects which foods are chosen by people. This idea provides a greater context into the issue at hand that not only do we need to provide healthier food but also appeal to the aesthetic of the food can lead to healthier choices that based on previous studies can lead to improvements of well-being (Cornil & Chandon, 2016). If we’re looking for the long-term effects of healthy eating, we can look towards a study conducted by Redzo Mujcic and Andrew J. Oswald in 2016 where they reviewed randomly sampled food diaries of Australian adults. While this study did showed that the well-being of adults showed an improvement in the near immediate, there was some aversion to healthier habits due to the effects accruing over time and not being seen until decades later (Mujcic & J.Oswald, 2016). This can be used when establishing our further research and policymaking on the subject to not only provide these healthier option interventions earlier in one’s life but highlight the immediate effects while emphasizing the long-term effects in a more fashionable light to the general public. To further emphasis this we can look at the research done in the United Arab Emirates where survey data was compiled and used to find significance between different factors that might affect happiness and health. Using the data collected, they have shown that eating healthy foods and exercising are significant for these effects and that policies put in place in the future should be focused on encouraging these habits for a better outcome of the citizens of this nation (Badri et al., 2021). As well, this study could be used to better develop policies worldwide as with variables being controlled for there in an overall generalization that can be made about these effects. Badri, M. A., Alkhaili, M., Aldhaheri, H., Alnahyan, H., Yang, G., Albahar, M., & Alrashdi, A. (2021). Understanding the interactions of happiness, self-rated health, mental feelings, habit of eating healthy and Sport/activities: A path model for Abu Dhabi. Nutrients, 14(1), 55. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14010055 Conner, T. S., Brookie, K. L., Carr, A. C., Mainvil, L. A., & Vissers, M. C. (2017). Let them eat fruit! the effect of fruit and vegetable consumption on psychological well-being in young adults: A randomized controlled trial. PLOS ONE, 12(2). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0171206 Cornil, Y., & Chandon, P. (2016). Pleasure as an ally of healthy eating? contrasting visceral and epicurean eating pleasure and their association with portion size preferences and Wellbeing. Appetite, 104, 52–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2015.08.045 Mujcic, R., & J.Oswald, A. (2016). Evolution of well-being and happiness after increases in consumption of fruit and vegetables. American Journal of Public Health, 106(8), 1504– 1510. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2016.303260 Park, S., Rim, S. J., & Lee, J. H. (2018). Associations between dietary behaviours and perceived physical and mental health status among Korean adolescents. Nutrition & Dietetics, 75(5), 488–493. https://doi.org/10.1111/1747-0080.12444
