A new study suggests that eating more fruit may lessen the impact of air pollution on lung function. Researchers from the University of Leicester analysed UK Biobank data from 207,421 participants to explore links between diet and lung health. They compared fruit, vegetables and wholegrain intake with FEV1, the amount of air exhaled in one second, and used fine particulate matter (PM2.5) as the pollution measure. For every five micrograms per cubic metre rise in PM2.5, FEV1 declined by 78.1 ml in those with low fruit intake, compared with a 57.5 ml decline among women who ate four portions of fruit or more. The team noted that men generally reported lower fruit consumption than women, which could help explain why the protective effect appeared in women.

Kaewsri, a PhD student at the Centre for Environmental Health and Sustainability at the University of Leicester, presented the findings at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Amsterdam. The study suggests that a healthy diet is linked to better lung function in both men and women, regardless of air pollution exposure, and that higher fruit intake among women was associated with smaller reductions in lung function linked to pollution. The researchers also suggested that antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds naturally present in fruit could help mitigate oxidative stress and inflammation caused by fine particles.

Professor Sara De Matteis, chair of the European Respiratory Society’s expert group on occupational and environmental health, said the findings reinforce the potential respiratory benefits of a healthy, plant‑based diet, though she noted that access to such diets is uneven and residual confounding cannot be ruled out. Sarah Sleet, chief executive of Asthma + Lung UK, welcomed the study but warned that inequality in diet remains a problem and that air pollution continues to hit poorer and minority communities hardest. The charity called on the government to set stronger, legally binding air quality targets that align with World Health Organisation guidelines.