(Booster Shots, Los Angeles Times) People who grow their own fruits and vegetables are apt to eat them, but a study finds that community gardeners may have an edge over home gardeners when it comes to consuming more fresh produce…

Eating more fruits and vegetables was also linked with being more socially involved and having a higher opinion of neighborhood aesthetics.

There could be value in those community gardens, beyond what the backyard has to offer, such as camaraderie and feeling more attached to one's neighborhood. "The array of qualities intrinsic to community gardens makes them a unique environmental and social intervention that can narrow the divide between people and the places where food is grown," the authors wrote, "and increase local opportunities to eat better."

They suggested health officials and policy makers offer community gardens throughout communities and make them permanent open space, support programs that connect community gardens to the local food-related groups such as food banks and farmer's markets, and create zoning codes that protect the gardens.

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