What came first, the food or the mood?

The entire field of nutrition science is founded on the premise that what we eat can impact our physical health. This is no longer up for debate, although there are still many nuances.

Less understood is the role of nutrition and mental health.

The association between individuals experiencing mental illness and poor diet has long been established. Also is the connection between having a lived experience of mental illness and chronic health conditions and disease, such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

However, these associations assumed that poor mental health caused poor diet, which influenced other health outcomes.

Does that mean the mood came first? Do mental health challenges cause poor diet?

While I think it would be fair to say that the idea that food could affect mental health was accepted at least to some degree, what was unknown was if food could actually have a causal relationship with mood. Could food choices directly affect mental health?

Food and Mood

According to research: what we know about food and mood

In May 2018, researchers analyzed 41 studies for their findings related to food and mental health. The aim of this research was to determine the role of nutrition as it relates to depression at a whole diet level, instead of individual nutrients. The review assessed several different dietary styles that included the following;

Healthy Eating Index (HEI)
Alternative HEI (AHEI)
Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension
Dietary Inflammatory Index
Mediterranean Diet

The study found that the Mediterranean diet had both the most significant impact on reducing depressive symptoms as well as the diet people stuck to best over the long term. The evidence also suggested that while the Mediterranean diet had the strongest association between the reduction of depressive symptoms of all the diets studied, there was a positive association between healthy eating overall and lower reported rates of depression. The studies addressing the Mediterranean diet had more longitudinal methods then the others, suggesting the duration of the study may play a role in establishing the relationship.

This review and analysis also found a dose-response relationship between a nutritious diet and decreased risk of mental disorders like depression. As a dose-response relationship indicates the effect (mental health) will improve as the dose (healthy food) increases.

When the levels of healthy food increase, mood improves.

Findings from Melbourne

These findings support the outcome of the SMILES trail in Melbourne. This study was able to determine a causal relationship between food and mental health. In particular, a reduction in depressive symptoms in those who adopted a modified version of the Mediterranean diet, as compared to those receiving social support.

What does this mean?

What does this mean for us? As individuals, who might be experiencing stress, anxiety, and depression. Or for those who are looking to support themselves at a time where there has never been more pressures on our mental health?

What’s becoming more apparent is that it’s about the quality and amount of real whole food you eat.

So whether it’s a traditional Japanese diet or a Mediterranean diet or a healthy version of an Australian diet. A pattern of eating based on a few simple and consistent factors is linked to a reduced risk of developing common mental disorders, particularly depression.

And on the flip side, typical Western dietary patterns that include sugary beverages, hyper processed foods, and food rich in saturated fatty acids when combined with low intake of fruits and vegetables has been linked to an increased risk of poor mental health outcomes including depression.

To regularly eat food that contains the nutrients you need to support both your health and your mood can improve your mental health outcomes, as well as reduce your risk for other chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Which came first?

Both. Or neither. The relationship between food and mood, nutrition and mental health is bidirectional. That means that while our state of mental health can impact our nutrition and food choices, our food choices can also affect our mental health.

It goes both ways which means tools that support our mental health can help improve our food habits. And, our food habits can improve our mental health.

If you would like to read more about Mental Health Nutrition, check out this post here.