Depressive symptoms mediate the association between dietary inflammatory index and sleep: A cross-sectional study of NHANES 2005–2014

Depression and the energy density dietary inflammatory index (EDII) are associated with sleep patterns, including sleep length, difficulties, and disorders. However, it is unclear whether depression plays a mediating role in the relationship between EDII and sleep patterns. Ren et al. (2025) examined this relationship in this cross-sectional analysis. After adjusting for all confounding variables, individuals with a higher EDII were found to be more likely to have unhealthy sleep patterns and a higher likelihood of suffering from depression compared to their peers with a lower EDII. Mediation analysis revealed that depressive symptoms explained 24.06% of the link between EDII and sleep patterns. When analyzing sleep pattern subtypes, depressive symptoms accounted for 18.22% of the relationship with sleep duration, 30.53% for sleep disorders (with significant direct EDII effects), and 93.73% for trouble sleeping (with minimal direct EDII effects). Depression has a role in mediating the favorable association between EDII and poor sleep habits. An anti-inflammatory diet may help improve sleep patterns. [NPID: Depression, sleep pattern, energy-density dietary inflammatory index, mediating effect, inflammation]

Year: 2025

Reference: Ren, R., Huang, R., Li, Y., Wang, W., Ye, X., Xi, L., Zhang, R., Peng, Y., & Wang, D. (2025). Depressive symptoms mediate the association between dietary inflammatory index and sleep: A cross-sectional study of NHANES 2005–2014. Journal of Affective Disorders, 372, 117–125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2024.12.020

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