A recent study found that when doctors and healthcare providers prescribed fruits and vegetables to their patients, that people actually increased their consumption of produce, shed excess weight, and saw notable reductions in their blood pressure.

Are these prescriptions actually leading to better health?

The study was part of a broader initiative in the healthcare field to utilize food as a form of medicine, with the aim of preventing or improving chronic health conditions such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

In what is believed to be the most extensive investigation of these initiatives to date, which was published in the American Heart Association’s peer-reviewed journal Circulation, researchers examined the impact of food vouchers on 3,881 individuals living in low-income neighborhoods across a dozen states, ranging from California to Florida. These participants received monthly vouchers ranging from $15 to $300, enabling them to purchase more fruits and vegetables from local farmers’ markets and grocery stores.

The research centered on assessing changes in the consumption of fruits and vegetables among both adults and children before and after receiving their “prescriptions.” Additionally, the study examined cardiovascular health indicators, food insecurity levels, and self-reported health status among the participants.

The results are suggesting that these produce prescriptions could be an important tool for improved health. May of the adults reported that their fruits and vegetable intake has increased by almost one cup per day, while children’s intake of fruits and veggies increased by about a quarter cup per day. 

The prescriptions also dropped the odds of being food insecure by one-third.

“Poor nutrition and nutrition insecurity are major drivers of chronic disease globally, including cardiometabolic conditions like Type 2 diabetes and their cardiovascular consequences, including heart failure, heart attack and stroke,” said Dr. Mitchell Elkind, chief clinical science officer of the American Heart Association in a press release. “This analysis of produce prescription programs illustrates the potential of subsidized produce prescriptions to increase consumption of nutritious fruits and vegetables, reduce food insecurity and, hopefully, improve subjective and objective health measures.”