"Dietary choices truly affect the way we feel"
While everyone has undoubtedly heard
the quote, “You are what you eat,” some of us still prove to need convincing
that dietary choices truly affect the way we feel. According to a large cohort study that included
nearly 9000 adult participants in Spain, over consumption of junk foods is
associated with depression. For
participants who regularly ate “fast foods” like hamburgers and pizza, there
was a 40% increased likelihood for becoming depressed compared with participants
who ate smaller amounts or no “fast foods.”
Interestingly, risk for depression rose steadily when higher amounts of junk
foods were eaten. Risk for depression
was also found to be higher in adults who frequently consumed baked goods like
doughnuts, muffins, and croissants.
“We were not surprised with the
results. Several studies have analyzed
the association between fast food and commercial bakery consumption and
physical diseases, such as obesity or coronary heart disease,” according to Almudena
Sánchez-Villegas, PhD. Dr. Sánchez-Villegas
is from the Department of Clinical Sciences at the University of Las Palmas de
Gran Canaria and the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the
University of Navarra in Spain.
The study, published in Public Health Nutrition, aimed to
determine the role that fast food and processed food consumption plays in the
development of depression. Starting in
1999, researchers began tracking diet and lifestyle choices on an ongoing
basis. Prior to the beginning of the
study, no participants had taken any antidepressants before or received any
diagnosis of depression.
On a bi-annual basis, participants
were asked to fill out surveys as a way of assessing dietary intake. Researchers analyzed total consumption of
“fast foods” and commercial baked goods, including things like hamburgers,
pizza, hot dogs, croissants, doughnuts, and muffins. Researchers also analyzed incidence of
depression, use of antidepressant medications, as well as lifestyle data.
Results of the study indicated that
within about 6.2 years after study initiation, 493 participants had been
diagnosed with depression. Those adults
who consumed the most “fast foods” had a corresponding higher risk for
developing depression. These adults, in
addition to those eating high amounts of commercial baked goods, also tended to
be single, less active, smoke, work over 45 hours weekly, and eat diets lower
in fruits, vegetables, nuts, fish, and/or olive oil. Even small amounts of “fast foods” were found
to be associated with a significantly increased depression risk.
A number of studies now support the
idea that mental well-being is heavily influenced by daily dietary and
lifestyle habits. Any comprehensive
treatment approach for depression should absolutely take into account and work
to optimize a person’s lifestyle choices and the foods they put into their body
on a regular basis. This will surely
increase the odds of success!
Dr. Shana McQueen
