Last week we talked about honey, where and how to find it, how to select it to and its health benefits. Locally produced honey can help with allergies and has a low impact on the environment. This week’s study shows once again the impact of locally produced food on our health.

At Benoo, we believe that diet has a direct impact on our physical and mental health. Good eating habits can reduce and prevent certain diseases, improve well-being and increase life expectancy.

In the context of World Health Day, which took place on Wednesday 7 April, we wanted to highlight a study carried out by the Department of Public Health and Paediatric Sciences at the University of Turin.

A small-scale Italian study conducted a year and a half ago on the consumption of local foods with fewer additives is showing encouraging results. The experiment involved 159 volunteers, half of whom ate food from local producers, monitored by an expert. The other half shopped in supermarkets. The researchers asked participants in both groups to follow the Mediterranean diet and to keep a detailed food diary. In total, the volunteers consumed a similar number of calories.

At the end of the study period, tests were carried out. The group that consumed local, additive-free produce had lower blood sugar levels, lower levels of abdominal fat, lower blood pressure, and a better depression score compared to the supermarket group. 

The study, conducted in July 2019, by the Department of Public Health and Paediatric Sciences at the University of Turin. in Turin with 159 volunteers, was published in Diabetes & Metabolism.