Inflammatory diet may lead to depression

The Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences published this study.

Frailty is defined as an identified state of increased vulnerability brought on by a decrease in function across numerous physiological systems, affecting 10 to 15 per cent of older people. It typically happens alongside other health issues, like depression. Frailty is defined as an identified state of increased vulnerability brought on by a decrease in function across numerous physiological systems, affecting 10 to 15 per cent of older people. It typically happens alongside other health issues, like depression.

Diet is thought to have a substantial impact on how frailty develops. One of the earliest research to make an effort to comprehend the connection between dietary inflammation, frailty, and depression.

An inflammatory diet that contains synthetic trans fats (such as partially hydrogenated oil), processed carbohydrates, and saturated fats increases the chance of becoming feeble, according to earlier studies.

A study titled "Association of the pro-inflammatory diet with frailty onset among adults with and without depressive symptoms" used the findings from the Framingham Offspring Study to examine whether people with depressive symptoms are more likely to experience dietary inflammation and subsequently become frail. The study made use of data from the Framingham Heart Study Offspring cohort. The 1,701 non-frail participants gave baseline data on their nutrition and mental symptoms, and they were followed for roughly 11 years before having their frailty status revaluated. According to the study, eating inflammatory foods was associated with a higher risk of frailty, and this association was considerably stronger in persons who had depressive symptoms. The researchers hypothesised that since individuals with depressive symptoms usually have higher levels of inflammation, dietary inflammation added to that level may speed the onset of frailty.

Courtney L. Millar, PhD, a post-doctoral fellow at the Marcus Institute of Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, and Harvard Medical School, is the study's lead author. This study found that eating an inflammatory diet may increase one's risk of getting weak because of depressive sentiments. This demonstrates how consuming a diet high in anti-inflammatory compounds (including fibre and plant-based molecules called flavonoids) may help in delaying the onset of frailty, according to Dr Millar.

By eating a pro-inflammatory diet, middle-aged and older people are more likely to develop frailty and depression symptoms at the same time than they are to do so independently, according to the exploratory findings.

A Mediterranean-style diet may delay the emergence of frailty, according to a previous study by Dr Millar, while a pro-inflammatory diet raises the likelihood that frailty will manifest, according to another. These studies serve as a foundation for the current one. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published both of these research.

This study "adds to our understanding of the relationship between dietary inflammation, depression, and frailty," claims Dr Millar. For people who are depressed, increasing their intake of fruits and vegetables high in fibre, flavonoids, and other dietary antioxidants maybe even more important.