According to the findings of a study of young adults published in the journal ‘PLOS ONE,’ those who embraced healthier food choices reported less anxiety and much better moods within weeks.
Study lead author, Heather Francis, said: “There is certainly evidence that eating a diet high in processed foods increases the risk of depression.” Francis is a lecturer in neuropsychology at Macquarie University in Sydney.
Explaining the link between poor diet and depression, Francis said, “Depression is associated with a chronic inflammatory response, and poor diet both increases systemic inflammation and is also a risk factor for depression.”
Depression, a major depressive disorder is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. Depression causes feelings of sadness and/or a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed.
Lead author of the study, Sylvie Mrug, professor and chair of the psychology department, said adolescents’ emotion regulation was still developing and it was possible that diet and other environmental factors have a strong impact on their depression levels.
According to Mrug, “Food such as fruits, vegetables and yogurt contain low levels of sodium and high amounts of potassium and should be encouraged as part of a teen’s daily diet.”
Although the studies show a potentially positive impact of healthy eating on symptoms of depression, researchers urged caution.
“While diet may be able to improve outcomes, at this stage we would not recommend that it replace medication,” said Francis.
The study involved 76 university students between 17 and 35 years of age. All were reported to have eaten a diet heavy in processed foods, sugar and saturated fats, while also reporting feelings of sadness, decreased ability to feel pleasure and lack of motivation in the previous week.
The ‘NewsmaxHealth’ published that half of the participants were coached to add fruit, vegetables, fish and olive oil to their diet and reduce processed foods. The others received no coaching and continued their regular diets.
After three weeks, the researchers found that those who consistently ate better reported much better moods. Their scores on a scale measuring depression levels were normal and they reported less anxiety than the regular diet group, whose depression levels remained in the “moderate to high” range.
