New study shows benefits of fruits and vegetables on sleep

This update was distributed by the Alliance for Food and Farming November 6, 2025:

A new study released this week found people who consume five or more fruits and vegetables each day could see a 16 percent improvement in sleep quality on average.

Previous studies have shown this before, but this important benefit sometimes gets lost among all the other amazing health aspects of eating more fruits and vegetables.

The impact of fruit and vegetable consumption on sleep is due to their high melatonin, magnesium, serotonin, and potassium content. According to the study, these compounds make it easier to fall asleep as well as experience longer and deeper periods of sleep.

The peer reviewed study was published in Sleep Health.

The study authors recommend a better understanding of this association between sleep and produce consumption given that dietary modifications could represent a novel and natural approach to achieve better sleep.

Unfortunately, only one in 10 of us eat enough fruits and vegetables each day. This new study supports decades of other health studies which show the enormous benefits of eating enough produce daily, including disease prevention, improvements to physical and mental health and a longer life span. The majority of these studies have been conducted using conventionally grown produce.

The nutritional importance of produce is why affordable and accessible fruits and vegetables are necessary if we want to improve public health through increased consumption, which will take a concerted and multi-layered effort.

This is also why disparaging the more affordable and popular produce items using disinformation must stop. It is simply inaccurate to label certain fruits and vegetables as superior to others through a false narrative about safety and quality.

For example, did you know “organic” is a production term only? It does not address the quality, safety or nutritional value of a product, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which has authority over the National Organic Standards. You read that correctly. The groups that claim better quality and improved safety with organic products are marketers or groups who receive funding from organic companies – not the government or regulatory agencies.

And, yet, inaccurate safety concerns have become a barrier to consuming the more affordable and accessible produce items. This “we’re better” approach is just unfair to consumers, especially when studies continue to verify the safety and significant benefits of eating all fruits and vegetables – conventional and organic.

If we want to move the needle on consumption, we should be supporting consumers’ choices to purchase the produce they enjoy and is affordable and accessible to them. This is a simple, factual and reassuring message that make shopping choices easier for everyone.

After all, we have enough to worry about and lose sleep over in today’s world. But, fruit and veggie consumption seems to help that too.

Visit safefruitsandveggies.com and @safeproduce to learn more about the safety of all produce.