Adherence to a Mediterranean Diet and Depression

Depression is a leading cause of disability and the third largest contributor to global disease burden worldwide. Nutrition may play a key role in maintaining mental health. The objective of this research was to examine adherence to a Mediterranean dietary (Med Diet) pattern and association with self-reported depressive symptoms among a representative sample of United States (U.S.) adult men and women and pregnant women. Data for this analysis was obtained from the publicly available National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) datasets. Among adult men and non-pregnant adult women, those in the highest quartile of Med Diet adherence had 54% lower odds of moderate to severe depressive symptoms compared to those in the lowest quartile of Med Diet adherence, after controlling for total calories and possible covariates. Also, when examining the relationship between Med Diet adherence and log CRP concentrations in adult men and women, controlling for total calories and possible covariates, compared to the first quartile of adherence, the highest quartile of Med Diet adherence was a significant negative predictor of log CRP concentrations.This study suggests that in adult men and non-pregnant women, greater adherence to the Med Diet compared to low adherence was significantly associated with reduced odds of moderate to severe depression symptoms.