Eating Better to Look Better

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Public health campaigns can use vanity to improve fruit and vegetable consumption, since experiments show carotenoid phytonutrients improve the physical attractiveness of African, Asian, and Caucasian faces.

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Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.

“Inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption” may kill millions around the globe every year, so the public health community is not beyond “appealing to vanity”— “health is intimately linked to attractiveness.”

How do you tell if someone’s healthy? You look for that golden glow that comes from the carotenoids in fruits and vegetables, found to increase the attractiveness of African, Asian, and Caucasian faces. These are kind of before-and-after shots, with more and more fruits and vegetables as you go left to right. Most think the greater fruit and veggie group on the right appears healthier and more attractive.

College students going from three servings a day to the recommended minimum of nine servings a day for just six weeks significantly improved skin color, and it’s “possible that even smaller dietary changes” could help as well. And, the worse we now eat, the more attractive we may become!

Public health advocates hope this research, suggesting healthy eating may “affect mate choice” and “sexual selection” provides a powerful message for promoting healthy eating, towards boosting fruit and veggie intake up to 13 servings a day.

And, while that rosy glow, associated with cardiovascular health in the face and lips, can also increase one’s appearance of healthfulness and attractiveness, the color red can also reduce junk food intake. People drink less soda from cups with red stickers than from cups with blue stickers, and eat less from red plates than from blue or white plates. How crazy is that? Check it out. They speculate it’s because our brains subconsciously are thinking “red traffic lights, stop-signs, red alert”—what are you putting in your poor body!?!

Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.

Images thanks to fadeevbiz via flickr

Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.

“Inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption” may kill millions around the globe every year, so the public health community is not beyond “appealing to vanity”— “health is intimately linked to attractiveness.”

How do you tell if someone’s healthy? You look for that golden glow that comes from the carotenoids in fruits and vegetables, found to increase the attractiveness of African, Asian, and Caucasian faces. These are kind of before-and-after shots, with more and more fruits and vegetables as you go left to right. Most think the greater fruit and veggie group on the right appears healthier and more attractive.

College students going from three servings a day to the recommended minimum of nine servings a day for just six weeks significantly improved skin color, and it’s “possible that even smaller dietary changes” could help as well. And, the worse we now eat, the more attractive we may become!

Public health advocates hope this research, suggesting healthy eating may “affect mate choice” and “sexual selection” provides a powerful message for promoting healthy eating, towards boosting fruit and veggie intake up to 13 servings a day.

And, while that rosy glow, associated with cardiovascular health in the face and lips, can also increase one’s appearance of healthfulness and attractiveness, the color red can also reduce junk food intake. People drink less soda from cups with red stickers than from cups with blue stickers, and eat less from red plates than from blue or white plates. How crazy is that? Check it out. They speculate it’s because our brains subconsciously are thinking “red traffic lights, stop-signs, red alert”—what are you putting in your poor body!?!

Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.

Images thanks to fadeevbiz via flickr

Doctor's Note

I previously covered this topic in Golden Glow and Rosy Glow, although I’m so glad we now have data from people of color as well. Can’t we just swallow supplements instead of salads? See Produce, not Pills, to Increase Physical Attractiveness.

I’m certainly not above appealing to vanity. Whatever it takes to get people healthy. Hence, videos like:

50 Shades of Greens describes a similar tack to promote more plant-based eating by appealing to sexual function and performance.

For further context, check out my associated blog post, Improving Attractiveness in Six Weeks.

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