Eat fresh, get happy

■ Getting the recommended dose of fruits (two cups) and veggies (three cups) each day has definitely been shown to improve all sorts of heath markers, like blood pressure, cholesterol, and inflammation. Plus they reduce the risk of heart disease and obesity — all great reasons to pack your plate full of them. But a new study just published in has revealed that bumping that up to eight cups can provide the same boost in happiness as getting a new job after being unemployed. Researchers also found that increasing your intake by just one portion every day can make you incrementally happier. And noted that the overall benefits of upping your consumption of fruits and veggies are almost immediate compared with the long-term positive effects on physical health. And if that doesn’t sound like a sure thing, nothing ever will.