Summary: Consuming large amounts of highly processed foods can affect mental health, increasing the risk of anxiety and depression.
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Do you love sugary drinks, reconstituted meat products and packaged snacks? You may want to reconsider based on a new study that explored whether people who eat higher amounts of ultra-processed foods have more adverse mental health symptoms.
Although ultra-processed foods are convenient, inexpensive, quick to prepare or ready-to-eat, these industrial formulations of processed food substances (oils, fats, sugars, starch, isolated proteins) contain little or no whole foods.
They are the result of extensive “physical, biological, and chemical processes” that create food products that are deficient in original, natural foods. Ultra-processed foods often include flavorings, colorings, emulsifiers, and other cosmetic additives.
While there is some evidence on ultra-processed food consumption and depression, data on other adverse mental health symptoms, such as anxiety and unhealthy days for mental health, are scarce.
Researchers at Florida Atlantic University Schmidt School of Medicine and collaborators explored a nationally representative sample of the United States population to determine whether people who consume large amounts of ultra-processed foods report significantly more mental health symptoms. adverse, such as depression, anxiety and mentally unhealthy days.
They measured mild depression, the number of days of poor mental health, and the number of anxious days in 10,359 adults aged 18 and older from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Study results, published in the journal public health nutritionshowed that people who ate the most ultra-processed foods compared to those who ate the least had statistically significant increases in the adverse mental health symptoms of mild depression, “mentally unhealthy days,” and “anxious days.”
They also had significantly lower rates of reporting zero “mentally unhealthy days” and zero “anxious days.”
The findings of this study are generalizable to the entire US, as well as to other Western countries with similar intakes of ultra-processed foods.
“The ultra-processing of foods depletes their nutritional value and also increases the number of calories, since ultra-processed foods tend to be high in added sugar, saturated fat and salt, while being low in protein, fiber, vitamins , minerals and phytochemicals. said Eric Hecht, MD, Ph.D., corresponding author and affiliated associate professor at FAU’s Schmidt School of Medicine.
“More than 70 percent of packaged foods in the US are classified as ultra-processed foods and they account for about 60 percent of all calories consumed by Americans. Given the magnitude of the exposure and the effects of consuming ultra-processed foods, our study has important clinical and public health implications.”
The researchers used the NOVA food classification for the study, which is a widely used system recently adopted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. NOVA considers the nature, scope, and purpose of food processing to classify foods and beverages into four groups: unprocessed or minimally processed foods, processed culinary ingredients, processed foods, and ultra-processed foods.
“The data from this study add important and relevant information to a growing body of evidence on the adverse effects of ultra-processed consumption on mental health symptoms,” said Charles H. Hennekens, MD, Dr.PH, co-author, the first Sir Richard Doll Professor of Medicine and Senior Academic Advisor, FAU Schmidt College of Medicine.
“Analytical epidemiological research is needed to test the many hypotheses formulated from these descriptive data.”
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, nearly 1 in 5 adults is living with a mental illness. Mental illnesses, including depression and anxiety, are leading causes of morbidity, disability, and mortality.
About this research news on diet and psychology
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original research: Closed access.
“Cross-sectional review of ultra-processed food consumption and adverse mental health symptoms” by Eric M Hecht et al. public health nutrition
Summary
Cross-sectional review of ultra-processed food consumption and adverse mental health symptoms
Objective:
See also
To explore whether people who consume higher amounts of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) have more adverse mental health symptoms.
Design:
Using a cross-sectional design, we measured UPF intake as a percentage of total energy intake in kilocalories using the NOVA food classification system. We explored whether people consuming higher amounts of UPF were more likely to report mild depression, more mentally unhealthy days, and more anxious days per month using multivariable analyzes adjusted for potential confounding variables.
Adjustment:
Representative sample of the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2007 and 2012.
Participants:
10,359 adults over 18 years of age with no history of cocaine, methamphetamine, or heroin use.
Results:
After adjusting for covariates, people with the highest level of UPF consumption were significantly more likely to report at least mild depression (OR: 1 81; 95% CI 1 09, 3 02), more mentally ill (ratio risk ratio (RR): 1·22; 95% CI 1·18, 1·25) and more days of anxiety per month (RR: 1·19; 95% CI 1·16, 1·23). They were also significantly less likely to report zero mentally unhealthy (OR: 0 60; 95% CI 0 41, 0 88) or anxious (OR: 0 65; 95% CI 0 47, 0 90) days.
Conclusions:
People who reported higher UPF intakes were significantly more likely to report mild depression, more mentally unhealthy and more anxious days, and less likely to report zero mentally unhealthy or anxious days. These data add important information to a growing body of evidence on the potential adverse effects of UPF consumption on mental health.
