Researchers in Australia, Italy, the UK, and the United States recently published a study in the Journal of Affective Disorders, showing a connection between inflammatory diet and depression.
Over an 8-year period, researchers tracked the eating habits and mental health of over 3,600 people who either had osteoarthritis or were at risk of developing it. They split the participants into 4 groups, based on their baseline inflammatory diet scores.
What are pro-inflammatory diets?
Researchers used the Dietary Inflammatory Index to calculate an inflammatory score of participants’ diets. This score rates diets on a continuum of anti-inflammatory to pro-inflammatory.
While not specifically part of the Dietary Inflammatory Index, the following foods can cause inflammation, according the the Arthritis Foundation:
- Sugar
- Saturated fats
- Trans fats
- Omega 6 fatty acids
- Refined carbohydrates (such as white flour, white rice, and potatoes)
- MSG
- Gluten
- Casein
What did the researchers find?
Well, they found that after the 8 years, the group that had the highest baseline inflammatory diet scores was 24% more likely to develop depression than the group with the lowest scores.
This is one more study in a growing body of research showing a connection between what we eat and our mental health.