Improved Pulmonary Function Following Increased Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Healthy Subjects

Abstract

1802 The pulmonary system can limit exercise tolerance in many subjects in health and disease, yet is not believed to change through diet or exercise. Previous epidemiologic literature has shown that both fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption and serum antioxidant levels are related to pulmonary function in healthy individuals. PURPOSE: Determine if increased FV consumption will improve pulmonary function in healthy subjects. METHODS: Fifty-two non-smoking subjects (M = 30; F = 22) with no pulmonary disorders were recruited from an 8-week fitness promotion program (Walk Kansas). Subjects were randomly divided into a control group (C; n = 22; 35 ± 11yr) and an intervention group (FV; n = 30; 45 ± 13yr). Both groups performed resting pulmonary function tests (PFT) and an NIH FV screener before and after the program while the FV group also received weekly newsletters to encourage FV consumption. RESULTS: There was no difference (p>0.05) in PFT or # of servings/day of FV between groups pre-testing. However, FV group significantly improved FV consumption by 0.75 ± 0.81 servings/day following the intervention whereas no difference (p>0.05) occurred in C. While no relation existed between PFT and FV consumption pre-testing among all subjects, a significant relationship was observed in FV group between the change in FV consumption and the change in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1)(r = 0.44) and the change in forced expiratory flow from 25–75% of expiration (FEF25–75)(r = 0.54). There were no changes in FV consumption or any PFT measurements in C following the 8-week testing period. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that increasing FV consumption, presumably through increased antioxidants, leads to improved pulmonary function in healthy subjects which may improve exercise tolerance in health and in reduced pulmonary function associated with aging and disease. Support from American Lung Association