Gardening and the exercise it involves reduce disease risk factors: study - The Washington Post

Comment on this storyThose who garden look forward to the season of seed packets and plantings, careful tending and abundant harvests.

Participants were all given health surveys that looked at such factors as body weight, waist circumference, physical activity and diet.

During the study, researchers found, those who gardened ate more fruit and vegetables than their counterparts, increasing their consumption by about 1.13 servings per day.

Though the gains were modest, researchers said that they are the types of small changes recommended by experts as a way to prevent the risk of chronic diseases.

“These findings provide concrete evidence that community gardening could play an important role in preventing cancer, chronic diseases and mental health disorders,” said Jill Litt, a professor of environmental health at the University of Colorado, Boulder and the paper’s senior author, in a news release.

The researchers, who received funding from the American Cancer Society, said it’s worth looking further into community gardening as a potential health intervention in urban areas.