Which Fruits and Vegetables Are Best For Weight Loss?

A diet rich in fruits and non-starchy vegetables is inversely associated with weight change, according to a recent study suggesting that the characteristics of specific foods influence their effects on weight.

“Current dietary guidelines recommend eating a variety of fruits and vegetables. However, based on nutrient composition, some particular fruits and vegetables may be more or less beneficial for maintaining or achieving a healthy weight,” explained the study’s authors.
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“We hypothesized that greater consumption of fruits and vegetables with a higher fiber content or lower glycemic load would be more strongly associated with a healthy weight,” they said.

For the study, researchers examined the association between change in intake of specific fruits and vegetables and change in weight in 3 large prospective cohorts consisting of 133,468 men and women between 1986 and 2010, adjusting for simultaneous changes in other lifestyle areas including physical activity, smoking status, and other dietary.

The study showed that increased intake of fruits was inversely associated with 4-year weight change: -0.53 lb per daily serving of fruit, -1.11 lb per daily serving of berries, and -1.24 lb per daily serving of apples and pears.

Increased intake of vegetables was also associated with weight change: -0.25 lbs per daily serving of vegetables, -2.47 lbs per daily serving of soy and tofu, and -1.37 lbs per daily serving of cauliflower.

Conversely, increased intake of starchy vegetables such as peas, potatoes, and corn were linked to weight gain among participants.

“These findings suggest that increased consumption of fruits and non-starchy vegetables is inversely associated with weight change and that different fruits and vegetables have different effects on weight. Increased satiety with fewer calories could be partly responsible for the beneficial effects of increasing fruit and vegetable intake,” they concluded.

-Michelle Canales Butcher

Reference:

Bertoia ML, Mukamal KJ, Cahill LE, et al. Changes in intake of fruits and vegetables and eight change in United States men and women followed for up to 24 years: analysis from three prospective cohort studies. PLOS Med. 2015 September [epub ahead of print] doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001878.