June 24th, 2008 · No Comments

By Julie Bonnin

Aging baby-boomers who love fruits and vegetables may like the results of a recent study that found fruits and vegetables can help preserve muscle mass in older men and women.

Researchers from Tufts University analyzed data from 400 participants 65 years and older who completed a three-year osteoporosis trial. They found a link between higher measures of lean body mass and diets relatively high in potassium-rich fruits and vegetables. Such diets could help mediate the muscle-wasting response that occurs with aging.

Volunteers whose diets were rich in potassium had 3.6 more pounds of lean tissue mass than volunteers with half the higher potassium intake.

So load up on these high-potassium fruits and vegetables: fresh apricots, avocados, bananas, cantaloupe, honeydew, kiwi, lima beans, oranges and orange juice, potatoes, prunes, spinach, tomatoes, vegetable juice, and winter squash.

And while you’re at it, count yourself greener: Because meat production is so much more resource intensive than plant production, your diet high in fruits and vegetables diet is healthier for you and the planet.

The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

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