Eating ultra-processed foods significantly increases the risk of depression, according to a major study.
Foods have long been linked to medical conditions such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer’s.
But now researchers at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran have concluded that eating junk food regularly increases the risk of depression by 15 percent.
Diets that include convenience foods, sugary cereals, and soft drinks are often high in fat, salt, and sugar, but low in vitamins and fiber.
Using data from clinical trials and studies around the world involving 160,000 men and women, researchers looked for links between mental illness and poor diet.
Researchers at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences (Iran) have concluded that eating junk food regularly increases the risk of depression by 15 percent.
Scientists suggest that ultra-processed foods (UPF) could be triggering inflammation in the brain, leading to mental health problems.
The results concluded that a high intake of low-nutrient foods also increased the risk of anxiety by 16 percent.
Scientists suggest that ultra-processed foods (UPF) could be causing inflammation in the brain and leading to mental health problems.
The British, who make up around 57 percent of the national diet, consume more UPF than any other European country.
The Iranian study, the largest to date on the impact of diet on mental well-being, also suggested that these foods can reduce the body’s levels of a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor, which is crucial for mental function. healthy.
However, some experts have argued that ultra-processed foods do not necessarily trigger depression.
Instead, they argue that depressed people are more likely to make poor food choices.
“When people feel depressed, they often don’t make the effort to cook, so they turn to ready meals,” says Gunter Kuhnle, professor of nutrition and food science at the University of Reading.
“We have known for a long time that there is a strong relationship between diet and mental health, but it is difficult to say definitively that poor diet causes depression.”
Earlier this year, the world’s largest review of UPFs found that they increased the risk of damage to every part of the body when consumed in large quantities.
The study, published in the British Medical Journal, found that diets rich in UPF elements increased the risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke by 50 percent.