Sort of. In the aftermath of a Thanksgiving feast, it’s easy to look for a silver lining wherever you can find it. So you’ll forgive us for seeing what we want to see in a new study, which makes a strong case for the healthiness of orange foods.

We all know that beta-carotene is good for you. The compound, which is found in carrots and other vegetables, is converted by your body to vitamin A, which is vital for good health. But a new Center for Disease Control study published this week plumbed the role of its less-famous cousin, alpha-carotene.

Both are part of a larger family of nutrients called carotenoids, which are plentiful in fresh vegetables. Alpha-carotene is found most notably in all things orange: tangerines, carrots, squash, and (yes!) yams and pumpkins.

The CDC researchers examined blood samples from a group of people who participated in a national study between 1988 and 1994. After tracking the volunteers over 14 years, the researchers found that over 3,800 of the original 15,000 had died. But those least likely to die were the folks with the highest levels of alpha-carotene in their blood. In fact, the people with the lowest alpha-carotene levels were almost twice as likely to die as the people with the highest levels. Overall, the more alpha-carotene a person had, the less likely he or she was to experience heart disease or cancer.

Don’t switch to an all-orange diet yet, though. According to the CDC’s Dr. Chaoyang Li, “Alpha-carotene may be at least partially responsible for the risk reduction. However, we are unable to rule out the possible links of other antioxidants or other elements in vegetables and fruits to lower mortality risk.” In other words, it might not be the alpha-carotene that does you good, but something else found in fruits and veggies.

Fine. Don’t just get seconds of pumpkin pie – hit up the blueberry and apple, too.