Evidence of the Importance of Dietary Habits Regarding Depressive Symptoms and Depression

Ljungberg, Tina; Bondza, Emma; Lethin, Connie

doi:10.3390/ijerph17051616

Cited by 124 publications

(105 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…In 84% of the cases, the study was performed in a Western country. The reviews mostly included prospective cohort, cross-sectional, or case-control studies, whereas five reviews investigated both observational studies and RCT [ 31 , 38 – 41 ], and one reviewed RCTs alone [ 11 ]. Most reviews included studies investigated the impact of diets, such as Mediterranean, healthy diets, or unhealthy diets.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of review method on the conclusions of clinical reviews: A systematic review on dietary interventions in depression as a case in point

et al. 2020

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Background The recommendations of experts who write review articles are a critical determinant of the adaptation of new treatments by clinicians. Several types of reviews exist (narrative, systematic, meta-analytic), and some of these are more vulnerable to researcher bias than others. Recently, the interest in nutritional interventions in psychiatry has increased and many experts, who are often active researchers on this topic, have come to strong conclusions about the benefits of a healthy diet on depression. In a young and active field of study, we aimed to investigate whether the strength of an author’s conclusion is associated with the type of review article they wrote. Methods Systematic searches were performed in PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and Google Scholar for narrative reviews and systematic reviews with and without meta-analyses on the effects of diet on depression (final search date: May 30 th , 2020). Conclusions were extracted from the abstract and discussion section and rated as strong, moderate, or weak by independent raters who were blind to study type. A benchmark on legitimate conclusion strength was based on a GRADE assessment of the highest level of evidence. This systematic review was registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42020141372. Findings 24 narrative reviews, 12 systematic reviews, and 14 meta-analyses were included. In the abstract, 33% of narrative reviews and 8% of systematic reviews came to strong conclusions, whereas no meta-analysis did. Narrative reviews were 8.94 (95% CI: 2.17, 36.84) times more likely to report stronger conclusions in the abstract than systematic reviews with and without meta-analyses. These findings were similar for conclusions in the discussion section. Narrative reviews used 45.6% fewer input studies and were more likely to be written by authors with potential conflicts of interest. A study limitation is the subjective nature of the conclusion classification system despite high inter-rater agreements and its confirmation outside of the review team. Conclusions We have shown that narrative reviews come to stronger conclusions about the benefits of a healthy diet on depression despite inconclusive evidence. This finding empirically underscores the importance of a systematic method for summarizing the evidence of a field of study. Journal editors may want to reconsider publishing narrative reviews before meta-analytic reviews are available.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of review method on the conclusions of clinical reviews: A systematic review on dietary interventions in depression as a case in point

et al. 2020

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“…Observational and experimental studies have shown that food intake, vitamin B, energy, and omega-3 fatty acid intake are associated with depression [26][27][28]. In fact, depression can be effectively prevented and alleviated by improving dietary habits [29,30]. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the characteristics of nutrient intake and dietary habits in order to prevent depression.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of the Effects of Nutrient Intake and Dietary Habits on Depression in Korean Adults

et al. 2021

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While several studies have explored nutrient intake and dietary habits associated with depression, few studies have reflected recent trends and demographic factors. Therefore, we examined how nutrient intake and eating habits are associated with depression, according to gender and age. We performed simple and multiple regressions using nationally representative samples of 10,106 subjects from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The results indicated that cholesterol, dietary fiber, sodium, frequency of breakfast, lunch, dinner, and eating out were significantly associated with depression (p-value < 0.05). Moreover, depression was associated with nutrient intake and dietary habits by gender and age group: sugar, breakfast, lunch, and eating out frequency in the young women’s group; sodium and lunch frequency among middle-age men; dietary fibers, breakfast, and eating out frequency among middle-age women; energy, moisture, carbohydrate, lunch, and dinner frequency in late middle-age men; breakfast and lunch frequency among late middle-age women; vitamin A, carotene, lunch, and eating out frequency among older age men; and fat, saturated fatty acids, omega-3 fatty acid, omega-6 fatty acid, and eating out frequency among the older age women’s group (p-value < 0.05). This study can be used to establish dietary strategies for depression prevention, considering gender and age.

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“…Thus, research is required in order to establish inexpensive and effective techniques to reduce the incidence of mental health problems and to improve the psychological well-being of the population. Alongside genetic and biological factors, researchers have increasingly begun to examine the role of lifestyle factors, including dietary intake, in the promotion of psychological well-being and the prevention of mental illness [ 7 , 8 ]. Studies that have explored potential associations between nutrient intake (namely carbohydrates, B vitamins and antioxidants such as vitamins C, E and polyphenols) or foods rich in these nutrients (e.g., fruits, vegetables, legumes, coffee, chocolate) and psychological well-being have produced conflicting results [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A High Polyphenol Diet Improves Psychological Well-Being: The Polyphenol Intervention Trial (PPhIT)

et al. 2020

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Mental ill health is currently one of the leading causes of disease burden worldwide. A growing body of data has emerged supporting the role of diet, especially polyphenols, which have anxiolytic and antidepressant-like properties. The aim of the present study was to assess the effect of a high polyphenol diet (HPD) compared to a low polyphenol diet (LPD) on aspects of psychological well-being in the Polyphenol Intervention Trial (PPhIT). Ninety-nine mildly hypertensive participants aged 40–65 years were enrolled in a four-week LPD washout period and then randomised to either an LPD or an HPD for eight weeks. Both at baseline and the end of intervention, participants’ lifestyle and psychological well-being were assessed. The participants in the HPD group reported a decrease in depressive symptoms, as assessed by the Beck Depression Inventory-II, and an improvement in physical component and mental health component scores as assessed with 36-Item Short Form Survey. No differences in anxiety, stress, self-esteem or body image perception were observed. In summary, the study findings suggest that the adoption of a polyphenol-rich diet could potentially lead to beneficial effects including a reduction in depressive symptoms and improvements in general mental health status and physical health in hypertensive participants.

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Evidence of the Importance of Dietary Habits Regarding Depressive Symptoms and Depression

Cited by 124 publications

References 60 publications

Impact of review method on the conclusions of clinical reviews: A systematic review on dietary interventions in depression as a case in point

Impact of review method on the conclusions of clinical reviews: A systematic review on dietary interventions in depression as a case in point

Analysis of the Effects of Nutrient Intake and Dietary Habits on Depression in Korean Adults

A High Polyphenol Diet Improves Psychological Well-Being: The Polyphenol Intervention Trial (PPhIT)

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