Nutrition's Effects on Mental Health

How does nutrition impact our mental health?

A study on clinical nutrition aimed to examine the relationship between diet quality and depression in a prospective study of adolescents from varied ethnic and cultural backgrounds.

While there is not a direct correlation to poor diet and the onset or development of mental illness, researchers found that diet plays a small role in mediating the effects of stress and neuroticism on common mental health problems which can be detrimental.

Stressed and/or neurotic individuals may be more prone to unhealthy dietary habits, which in turn may contribute to depression and anxiety (Schweren, 2020).

Transitioning into college comes with life adjustments that one might not prepared for. Making your health a priority is a way to balance the stress your body encounters both physically and mentally. Most universities have meal plans for students to adapt as well as other nutritional resources. Adopting a balanced diet can help students increase energy levels, promote a functioning immune system, improve their ability to cope with stress, and increase concentration and performance in school.

What Can You Do?

Establish a healthy diet

A healthy diet includes:

Eating lots of vegetables and fruit. This is one of the most important diet habits. ...
Choosing whole grain foods.
Eating protein foods.
Limiting highly and ultra-processed foods.
Making water your drink of choice. Water supports health and promotes hydration without adding calories to the diet.

Healthy Impact Foods -
Vegetables
Fruits
Whole-grain products
Fish
Coffee/ tea

Unhealthy Impact Foods-

Red/processed meatButter and hard margarines Sugar-sweetened beverages

Schweren, L. J. S., Larsson, H., Vinke, P. C., Li, L., Kvalvik, L. G., Arias-Vasquez, A., Haavik, J., & Hartman, C. A. (2021). Diet quality, stress and common mental health problems: A cohort study of 121,008 adults. Clinical Nutrition, 40(3), 901–906. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2020.06.016