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Independent and joint associations of dietary diversity and physical activity on mental health among older adults in China: a cross-sectional study
Not much research has been done on how physical activity (PA) and dietary diversity (DD) interact to affect anxiety, depression symptoms and their co-occurrence. Therefore, this research by Dong, Huang & Liu (2025) aimed to explore this relationship using data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS). Self-reported dietary diversity scores (DDS), which range from 0 to 8, were used to measure dietary variety. A DDS of less than 5 was considered insufficient, while a score of 5 or higher was deemed sufficient. PA was measured using a binary self-report question. DD and PA were examined independently and in combination for their effects on anxiety, depressive symptoms, and their co-occurrence. The study looked at how DD and PA affected anxiety, depressive symptoms, and their co-occurrence, both separately and in combination. The study found that sufficient DD was independently linked to a reduced risk of anxiety, depressive symptoms, and their co-occurrence. Similarly, regular exercise was also a strong protective factor for mental health. Furthermore, the combination of sufficient DD and regular exercise had an even stronger protective effect on mental health. According to this study, a decreased risk of mental health issues was linked to both enough DD and frequent physical exercise. Moreover, combining both factors further strengthened this protective effect. According to the results, evaluating nutritional diversity and physical activity together may provide important information for creating preventative plans for mental health problems in the elderly. [NPID: Dietary diversity, physical activity, Anxiety, depressive symptoms, older adults, CLHLS]
Year: 2025
