Office fruit fans who snack on the tasty treats in a bid to improve their diet and lose weight might find it helpful to visualise their goals.

According to a new Canadian study, people who can imagine their diet and eating habits are more likely to achieve their overall weight loss targets.

Study participants who decided to eat fruit and visualised doing so for a week, ate twice as much as they would usually.

"Athletes do lots of work mentally rehearsing their performances before competing and it's often very successful," said Barbel Knauper from McGill University, "so we thought having people mentally rehearse how they were going to buy and eat their fruit should make it more likely that they would actually do it."

Recently, a spokesperson from the Department of Health said the government would be taking a new approach to tackling obesity.

She said an emphasis would be placed on encouraging people to consume more fruit and veg and do more exercise.

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The government is urging people to adopt a healthier lifestyle and eat more fruit and vegetables after data showed that the number of obesity operations carried out in the UK rose by 70 per cent last year.

In total over 7,000 people had surgery to help them lose weight, at a cost of £50 million to the NHS.

Tam Fry, from the National Obesity Forum, said: "This is the second year in succession that rates have risen by 30 per cent and I would not be surprised if the figures for 2011/12 were similar.

"They will prove to those who wish to dismiss the severity of the obesity crisis just how bad it is, and the rise in bariatric surgery is particularly revealing."

A Department for Health spokeswoman said that a new approach to tackling obesity was needed, and urged people to eat more fruit and vegetables and do more exercise.

Snacking on fruit from the office fruit basket rather than sweet treats like cakes and biscuits can help people stop piling on the pounds.

Eating tasty office fruit also has a number of health benefits, for example, pears contain high amounts of fibre, while strawberries are rich in vitamin C, which aids the immune system.

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Many people often use the office fruit basket to get their recommended five-a-day.

Eating plenty of office fruit box treats is a great way to stay fit and healthy because all the snacks are rich in vitamins, minerals and vital antioxidants.

As well as this, office fruit snacks are also fat free and only contain natural sugars, meaning they're great to eat if you're trying to lose weight.

If you're a yo-yo dieter, scientists may have made a discovery that could help you out.

Researchers from Maastricht University in the Netherlands have found a link between a protein which regulates blood pressure in the body and post-diet weight gain in women.

Women who put on weight after dieting, probably experience a change in the protein's concentration in the blood when they were trying to shift the pounds, the study revealed.

"It does appear that it should be possible within a few years to use this finding to develop a test to show who is at high risk of putting weight back on after a diet," said Edwin Mariman, professor of functional genetics at Maastricht.

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Office fruit fans who are concerned about their ticker might find soft citrus fruits could help them out.

According to the Sun Herald, "a well-balanced diet full of fresh citrus fruit is … a great start to keeping a healthy heart".

As well as snacks from the office fruit box including clementines and satsumas being an amazing source of vitamin C, the newspaper suggests they're also great because they are "fat free, sodium free, cholesterol free and free from added sugars".

If you're interested in improving the health of your heart, there are other office fruit basket treats which could help you out.

Apples and plums from the office fruit delivery are both rich in plenty of antioxidants. These help prevent free radicals from damaging cells in the body, thus reducing your risk of suffering from heart disease.

Recent research from Warwick Medical School revealed that long-term sleep deprivation could increase people's risk of heart disease and strokes, so also ensure you get a good night's kip.

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When you're at work and you're feeling a little peckish, the first place you probably head is to the office fruit basket.

Office fruit bananas are a great thing to snack on because they're rich in fibre, which helps you stay fuller for longer.

While it's well known certain foods help you feel less hungry, it is not clear what the relationship between food, our stomach and our brain is and how they all regulate feelings of fullness or hunger.

This is why scientists from the University of Aberdeen Rowett Institute for Nutrition and Health is launching a new five-year study to understand this relationship better.

Professor Julian Mercer, head of obesity and metabolic health at the institute, said: "The Full4Health study will involve a range of different projects which will investigate the mechanics of hunger, satiety and feeding behaviour and how these interact and change over the years."

He added that this research will help scientists "understand how responses to food differ in our bodies across the different age groups". This will be the first study to do this, the professor explained.

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Office fruit basket treats are not only great healthy snacks for you to eat, but best of all, where possible, they're organic, meaning few or no pesticides are used when growing them.

This is great news for all male office fruit fans out there because a new study has revealed pesticides on fruit and veg could actually impact on men's fertility.

Researchers from the University of London's School of Pharmacy focused on pesticides used on the continent for their European Commission-funded study, reports the Daily Mail.

The effects of pesticides could be particularly harmful in the womb, raising the risk of male foetuses suffering reproductive defects and low sperm counts later in life, the study found.

Elizabeth Salter Green, director of campaign group CHEM Trust, said: "Boys and pregnant women are encouraged to eat lots of fruit as it is known to have health benefits.

"It is vital that the testing of pesticides in the UK and EU includes their effects as hormone disruptors, particularly when we know they can undermine men's reproductive health," reports the news provider.

Recently, a study by a Singaporean urologist, reported in the Times of India, revealed magnesium found in bananas could help boost male fertility.

Bearing this in mind, you might want to chomp on the mainly organic bananas from the office fruit box.

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Office fruit fans who are feeling a little bit down due to the miserable winter weather might benefit from some expert tips on how to beat the blues.

Dr Keith Hopcroft, writing for the Sun, said there are some easy ways people can feel a little bit less depressed.

Sorting out your sleep pattern is one way to do this. "A shortage of shut-eye and an irregular sleep routine can send you into the doldrums," he explained. So you should try having a regular bedtime and avoid caffeine before hitting the sack.

You could also try eating cherries from the office fruit box during the day as they're rich in melatonin, which can help regulate your sleeping patterns.

Dr Hopcroft suggests another way to beat the winter blues is by doing some exercise.

"Exercise stimulates 'nature's antidepressants' in your brain – so you end up exhausted, but chirpy," he said.

Another thing you could do to boost your mood is eat office fruit bananas.

According to mental health charity Mind, the yellow fruit can improve mood because it contains trypotophan, which the body converts into serotonin – bringing about a euphoric effect.

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Office fruit fans who are trying to lose a few pounds need to ensure they strengthen their bodies fully before they start undertaking rigorous exercise.

Alan Gordon, exercise and nutrition consultant, explained people who are overweight tend to have poor core muscles.

"The top tip is that you need to strengthen your body first without a shadow of a doubt. Even before you go out walking, you need to make sure that you get your core right," he said.

In order to lose weight, you could couple exercise with consuming plenty of office fruit.

Peaches and nectarines from the office fruit delivery are particularly useful for people working out as they contain plenty of potassium, which the body loses when you perspire, so the fruits can help balance your mineral salt levels.

Recently, a study by Imperial College London revealed that the worldwide prevalence of obesity has almost doubled since 1980, showing the importance of doing things to stay fit and healthy – such as eating treats from the office fruit box.

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Women who consume high volumes of folic acid, found in vitamin B from a number of office fruit favourites such as bananas and peaches, are less likely to suffer from mouth cancer, it has been claimed.

Research conducted at the Columbia University Medical Centre and Harvard School of Public Health in the US found that women who drank a large amount of alcohol and had low folic acid intake were three times as likely to develop mouth cancer than those who drank the same amount but had high folic acid intake, reports Female First.

Chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, Dr Nigel Carter, said: "Rates of mouth cancer in women have been increasing for many years as a result of changed social habits with more women smoking and drinking.

"This new research could offer a method to reduce this by looking at the folic acid intake and increasing fruit and vegetables containing folic acid in the diet."

As well as containing folic acid, bananas have a number of other health benefits that make them a great choice of snack from the office fruit basket.

The tasty fruit contains energy-boosting natural sugars and are also a great source of potassium.

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Office fruit fans who receive bonuses are probably given them in the hope they stay put at their job.

A new survey by CBSbutler, reported in the Recruiter, revealed nearly two-thirds of managers feel bonuses are the most effective way to retain staff.

Just over a quarter (27 per cent) said pension plans are the biggest incentive for staff continuing to work at a company, while none of the managers said gym memberships or lifestyle incentives would keep staff at a firm.

David Leyshon, managing director of CBSbutler, said: "I believe the best way to motivate staff … is by using bonuses and reward based pay.

"However, it is very important that managers do not put emphasis on rewarding only hard financial targets at the expense of other qualitative skills such as teamwork, managing change, problem solving and customer focus."

One way to keep you staff happy could be by putting an office fruit basket in your workplace.

There are plenty of tasty treats in the office fruit box to ensure your staff get their five-a-day.

But as well as this, there are snacks, including office fruit grapes and bananas, which are rich in energy-boosting sugars, helping staff to power through a busy day at work.

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