The association between the food we eat and health is very well established. We are what we eat, and a low quality diet devoid of essential nutrients is unable to provide the individual with the correct chemicals required for optimal biochemical and physiological performance. With a low quality diet, over time, structural components in the body decay and become dysfunctional and this leads to disease. The brain, as with other structures is reliant on the provision of many nutrients that are only present in high quality diets. Consuming low quality diets therefore causes deterioration in the structure of the brain, and this leads to functional problems. In the short term, this can be seen in mood changes and over longer time spans, serious mental health problems such as anxiety and depression can develop. High glycaemic foods may lead to mood changes because they cause too much variability in blood sugar levels, and this destabilised the function of the brain, through fluctuations in energy levels.
Studies show that increasing consumption of dairy products, fibre, fruit and vegetables is associated with a reduced risk of developing depression. This may relate to the way these foods are able to stabilise blood glucose levels, and this may have beneficial effects on the function of the brain. For example, dairy and fibre can both decrease the speed at which carbohydrate foods are digested, and significantly slow the entry of glucose to the blood from the gut. As fruit and vegetables are rich in fibre, this also explains their beneficial glycaemic effects.
Consumption of sweetened soft drinks, refined foods, and cakes have all been shown to be associated with an increased risk of depression. This may be because they destabilise blood glucose levels. For example, one group of researchers assessed the effects of high and low glycaemic index energy restricted diets on the mood and cognitive performance of overweight adults over a period of 6 months. The researchers noted that the high glycaemic index diet resulted in a worsening of the mood over the course of the diet in comparison to the low glycaemic index diet. In particular, the depression score of the high glycaemic index diet was significantly higher than the low glycaemic index diet group. In another study, researchers also found that consumption of high glycaemic index foods were a risk factor for the development of depression in postmenopausal women. Incrementally increasing sugar intakes were associated with an increasing risk for the development of depression.
Eat Well, Stay Healthy, Protect Yourself
RdB
