Medindia LOGIN REGISTER
Medindia

The Surprising Link Between Food and Mood

by Karishma Abhishek on Sep 24 2023 11:59 PM
Listen to this article
0:00/0:00

The Surprising Link Between Food and Mood
Consuming highly processed foods such as burgers, pizzas, and diet soda is linked to a higher likelihood of depression, as revealed by a research investigation.
The findings, published in the JAMA Network Open Journal, suggest that eating energy-dense, palatable, and ready-to-eat items, including grain foods, sweet and savory snacks, ready-made meals, and beverages with artificial sweeteners, processed meat, dairy products, fats, and sauces, can raise the risk of depression.

"Although the mechanism associating UPF to depression is unknown, recent experimental data suggests that artificial sweeteners elicit purinergic transmission in the brain, which may be involved in the etiopathogenesis of depression," said researchers from Harvard University in the US.

Beware of Your Bite

Prior studies have been hampered by short-term dietary data and a limited ability to account for potential confounders. Additionally, no study has identified which UPF foods and/or ingredients may be associated with the risk of depression or how the timing of UPF consumption may be associated.

To understand, the team investigated the prospective association between UPF and its components with incident depression. They included 31,712 females, aged 42 to 62 years, between 2003 and 2017.

The results indicated a staggering 49 percent high risk of developing depression in women who consumed nine or more portions of ultra-processed foods daily, compared to those who ingested fewer than four portions.

Women who decreased their ultra-processed food consumption by at least three servings daily showcased a diminished risk of depression compared to those maintaining a consistent intake, the study showed.

Advertisement
Increased consumption of ultra-processed foods also leads to obesity and keeps blood sugar levels consistently high, increasing the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. This in turn can also increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, and cancer.

Reference:
  1. Infiltrating CD8+ T cells exacerbate Alzheimer’s disease pathology in a 3D human neuroimmune axis model - (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-023-01415-3)

Source-IANS


Advertisement