Home Family Practice Diet High in Refined Carbs Could Increase Depression Risk

Diet High in Refined Carbs Could Increase Depression Risk

Consumption of foods with high glycemic index tied to increased risk in postmenopausal women

THURSDAY, Aug. 13, 2015 (HealthDay News) — High-glycemic-index (GI) diets could increase the risk of depression in postmenopausal women, according to a study published in the August issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

James E. Gangwisch, Ph.D., from Columbia University in New York City, and colleagues assessed the relations between dietary GI, glycemic load, and other carbohydrate measures with depression in postmenopausal women participating in the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study (87,618 women at baseline between 1994 and 1998 and 69,954 women at three-year follow-up).

The researchers found that a progressively higher dietary GI was associated with increasing odds of incident depression in fully adjusted models (odds ratio [OR] for the fifth versus first quintile, 1.22). There were also increasing odds of incident depression with progressively higher consumption of dietary added sugars (OR for the fifth versus first quintile, 1.23). There were significantly lower odds of incident depression associated with higher consumption of lactose, fiber, nonjuice fruit, and vegetables, while nonwhole/refined-grain consumption was associated with increased odds of depression.

“Randomized trials should be undertaken to examine the question of whether diets rich in low-GI foods could serve as treatments and primary preventive measures for depression in postmenopausal women,” the authors write.

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