“Happy little Vegemites, as bright as bright can be…”
Turns out, the jingle is correct. Well, almost correct. Correct enough for Australians to be excited about it.
Researchers out of Victoria University found people who eat yeast-based spreads – such as Vegemite – have lower levels of stress and anxiety, compared to those who don’t.
The key, the researchers believe, is B Vitamins – a deficiency in B Vitamins has previously been linked to depression. Vegemite, as all Aussies know, is “rich in vitamins B1, B2, B3, and B9”.
“While there have been many jingles over the years, there isn’t any scientific evidence to back it up, which is something we were interested in establishing,” lead researcher Professor Vasso Apostolopoulos told the Herald Sun.
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The research looked at the spread-eating habits of 500 people across Australia, New Zealand and the UK.
The participants were asked what yeast-based spreads they ate, how often, and their moods were monitored with psychological assessment.
“We found people who ate yeast-based spreads had lower levels of anxiety and stress compared to those who ate none,” Professor Apostolopoulos said.
“Those who ate spreads that contained B12, which includes Marmite and the new Vegemite with the orange lid, were even less stressed and anxious than those who ate the other brands.”
