Because the pre-Christmas weeks can feel overwhelming, I have always been grateful that Thanksgiving falls right before the December holidays and the New Year. It is much less commercialized and less consumer-oriented. The main emphasis of Thanksgiving is on being with family and friends, cooking and sharing a hearty meal, and focusing on what we are thankful for. It's a time to gather in, connect, and if we're lucky, get a little rest before the Black Friday-Cyber Monday-Chanukah-Christmas-New Year's Eve hullabaloo kicks into full gear.
Citrus has long been part of the American Thanksgiving foodscape. Our next blog will focus on some delicious ways to use oranges and grapefruits in your holiday meals and drinks. In fact, it would behoove us to include these phenomenal fruits in your holiday meals, as citrus fruits actually promote gratitude! In today's blog, we'll look at some of the amazing properties of citrus that can literally help us feel thankful.
Oranges Lower Depression
You've heard the popular idiom: "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." While apples are healthy to eat, a recent Harvard Medical School study has shown that eating an orange a day lowers the risk for developing depression by twenty percent; this significant effect is not observed with any other fruits or vegetables. The study showed that daily orange consumption stimulates the growth of a type of gut bacteria called Faecalibacterium prausnitzii. This particular species influences the production of serotonin and dopamine, both of which are well known to help us chill and improve our mood.
Add to that the high Vitamin C content of citrus, and you have a double good mood whammy. Vitamin C regulates the stress hormone cortisol, which tends to spike during busy times like the holidays. Vitamin C is also important for the production of the relaxation hormones serotonin and dopamine. Since ninety percent of the body's serotonin is produced in the gut, the humble orange becomes a prominent player in gut-brain health, and thus mood.
There's more yet: oranges, grapefruit, and tangerines are also rich in citrus-specific polyphenols, which encourage the growth of yet another vital gut bacteria species called Bifidabacterium longum. This bacteria strengthens the gut lining and fortifies the gut-brain axis. Tangerines in particular contain a polyphenol called nobiletin, which helps our circadian rhythm equilibrate. We feel better, poop better, sleep better, and thus feel thankful!
So if you have a "gut" feeling that eating citrus is good for you during the busy holidays, follow it!
Citrus Is Associated with Good Fortune and Beauty
Many cultures associate citrus with good luck and beauty. In China, tangerines and other citrus fruits are given for the Lunar New Year as a symbol of abundance and fortune. During the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, a citron known as an etrog is used in a ceremony and represents the beauty of the citrus fruits that were once considered rare in the Mediterranean. Similarly, the gifting of oranges has been part of Christmas since St. Nicholas's time, and really gained popularity in the 19th century. No matter the culture, religion, or holiday, one theme is shared: citrus fruits represent good fortune and happiness due to the fact that they were once rare and are now widely available and affordable. Now that's something to be thankful for!
The Sweet Taste of Gratitude
Our brains are wired to pursue pleasure and recoil from discomfort or unpleasant sensations. We have a "reward system" built into us, which directly associates certain experiences with pleasurable sensations. Research has shown that sweet tastes induce a feeling of pleasure and reward. Sweeter citrus varieties like oranges can play a role in activating the reward system by associating the holiday experience with the pleasure of sweet tastes. And, unlike candies and desserts, the effect is more likely to last.
Here at Florida Fruit Shippers, we are grateful for the land and climate where our citrus trees can grow and thrive, the farmers and employees who work hard to tend to the trees, the harvesting of the fruits, and the shipping right to your doorstep. We are especially grateful for you, our customers, who, like us, appreciate the sweetness of having healthy, delicious citrus as a part of daily life.
From all of us: Happy Thanksgiving!
Sources:
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2025/02/eating-citrus-may-lower-depression-risk/
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/diet/can-eating-oranges-improve-mood-and-memory/articleshow/118716899.cms
https://www.realsimple.com/mood-boosting-fruits-11707092
https://www.whyzz.com/stories/offering-oranges-to-the-gods-is-a-way-to-ask-for-good
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/6622070/jewish/15-Facts-You-Should-Know-About-the-Etrog.htm
https://lockerwallpaper.com/blogs/news/the-sweet-tradition-a-history-of-citrus-fruit-at-christmas-time
https://citrusindustry.net/2020/12/22/citrus-holiday-traditions/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1057740815000273
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-28553-9
