Glycemic index, glycemic load, and common psychological disorders

This 2016 cross-sectional study assessed 3363 members of staff of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences to uncover the relationship between dietary glycaemic index (GI) and glycaemic load (GL) with psychological distress, anxiety and depression. A validated, self-administered, dish-based, semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire gathered GI and GL data, while validated Iranian versions of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and General Health Questionnaire-12 analysed anxiety, depression, and psychological distress among the sample. After potential confounders were controlled, Haghighatdoost et al. (2016) discovered that the subjects in the top tertile of GI had a 44% greater risk of depression (with a p-value of 0.03) and a 52% increase for anxiety (p-value was 0.06), relative to those in the first tertile. Whereas, the higher the glycaemic loads (GLs) of the subjects’ diets, the lower the odds were of developing mental disorders (Odds ratio: 0.66), depression (OR=0.69), and psychological distress (OR=0.67). When stratified analyses were performed by sex, a positive link was observed between GI with odds of depression (OR = 1.52) and psychological distress (OR = 1.66) in women but not in men, after potential confounders were accounted for. These findings supported a direct association between dietary GI with depression odds and inverse relationships between glycaemic load with mental disorders, depression and psychological distress. [NPID: sugar, processed food, anxiety, depression, mental disorders, depression, psychological distress]

Year: 2016

Reference: Haghighatdoost, F., Azadbakht, L., Keshteli, A. H., Feinle-Bisset, C., Daghaghzadeh, H., Afshar, H., Feizi, A., Esmaillzadeh, A., & Adibi, P. (2016). Glycemic index, glycemic load, and common psychological disorders. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 103(1), 201–209. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.114.105445

Related Studies

Minimally processed foods are more satiating and less hyperglycemic than ultra-processed foods: A preliminary study with 98 ready-to-eat foods

This 2016 study tested the relationship between the level of food processing involved in making a product and people’s glycemic and satiety responses. The food served varied in terms of processing based on the international NOVA classification, which were: raw and minimally processed foods; processed foods; and ultra-processed foods (industrial products made from substances extracted/derived […]

Association between consumption of ultraprocessed foods and cognitive decline

Although ultraprocessed food consumption has been associated with a higher risk of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease, less is known about its relationship to cognitive decline. In this study by Gomes Gonçalves et al. (2023), the authors looked at the connection between participants participating in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health’s use of […]