Dietary Patterns May Be Associated With Depressive Symptoms
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, June 4, 2025 -- Dietary patterns seem to be associated with depressive symptoms, according to a study published online June 3 in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health.
Gabriella Menniti, M.D., from Unity Health Toronto, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study using National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007 to 2018 data to examine the association between restrictive dietary patterns and depressive symptoms stratified by sex and body mass index.
A total of 28,525 adults were included in the study, 7.79 percent of whom reported depressive symptoms. The researchers found that those adhering to calorie-restrictive diets had a 0.29-point increase in Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for depressive symptom severity scores compared with individuals not following a specific diet. Among individuals with overweight, calorie-restricted diets and nutrient-restricted diets were associated with a 0.46- and 0.61-point increase in PHQ-9 scores, respectively. Higher somatic symptom scores were seen for men who followed any diet versus those not on a diet. Compared with women not following a diet, men on a nutrient-restrictive diet had a 0.40-point increase in cognitive-affective symptom scores.
"Calorie-restricted diets were associated with higher depressive symptom scores, which contrasts with the findings of earlier controlled studies," the authors write. "Future studies simulating real-world dieting are important as challenges such as nutritional deficiencies may arise and contribute to worsening depressive symptoms."
One author disclosed ties to Roche, Novartis, and Eisai.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted June 2025
Read this next
ADHD Drug Treatment Linked to Reduced Rate of Adverse Outcomes
THURSDAY, Aug. 14, 2025 -- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) drug treatment is associated with reduced rates of adverse outcome events, including suicidality...
Suicide-Specific Therapy App Effectively Cuts Suicidal Behavior in High-Risk Inpatients
THURSDAY, Aug. 14, 2025 -- A mobile phone app designed to deliver suicide-specific therapy reduces suicidal behavior among high-risk psychiatric inpatients, according to a study...
Dietary Patterns Linked to Chronic Kidney Disease Risk
THURSDAY, Aug. 14, 2025 -- Compared with other dietary indices, Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) and the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) provide chronic kidney...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.