London, Sep 2 (IANS): Daily fruit consumption cuts the overall risk of death by 32 percent and cardio-vascular diseases (CVDs) by up to 40 percent, a study shows.

Researchers found that compared to people who never ate fruit, those who ate fruit daily cut their CVD risks by 25-40 percent - around 15 percent for ischaemic heart disease (IHD), around 25 percent for ischaemic stroke and 40 percent for haemorrhagic stroke.

The findings came from a seven year follow up study of nearly 5,000,00 people living in ten different areas of China.

"The more fruit you eat the more your CVD risk goes down. It suggests that eating more fruit is beneficial compared to less or no fruit," said lead researcher Dr Huaidong Du from Oxford University.

The researchers also found that people who consumed fruit more often had significantly lower blood pressure (BP).

"Patients with CVD and hypertension should also be encouraged to consume more fresh fruit," Du noted.

The study was presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress, 2014 in Barcelona.