Tag: DMHR

Chronic Insomnia Is Associated With Higher Ultraprocessed Food Consumption

Posted on by CNP Staff
  • A large epidemiological study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics reported an association between the consumption of ultra-processed food and chronic insomnia
  • Overall, 19.4% of individuals had symptoms of chronic insomnia, and ultra-processed foods were 16% of participants’ daily food intake
  • However, increasing ultra-processed food intake by 10% was associated with 9% higher odds of suffering from chronic insomnia among men and 5% higher odds among women

We have all experienced situations when we have trouble getting good sleep. This can happen when we are excited, when something troubles us, when our sleeping arrangements are uncomfortable, and under many other circumstances. However, some people have constant difficulties with getting good sleep. This is called chronic insomnia.

What is chronic insomnia?


Chronic insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized by difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too early, occurring at least three nights per week for three months or more (Insomnia – What Is Insomnia? 2022).  Common causes of chronic insomnia include stress, anxiety, depression, chronic pain, and certain medications or substances.

This condition leads to chronically poor sleep quality and insufficient rest, which can significantly impair daytime functioning, including concentration, mood, and overall productivity (Drake et al., 2003; Roberts et al., 2008). Chronic insomnia is also associated with an increased risk of developing other health problems, such as cardiovascular disease or diabetes (Sofi et al., 2014; Vgontzas et al., 2009).

Insomnia and diet


Diet is an important determinant of health and chronic disease risk. Many studies report links between dietary habits and risks of specific diseases or adverse health outcomes (Camprodon-Boadas et al., 2024; Hedrih, 2024; Huang et al., 2023).

 

Diet is an important determinant of health and chronic disease risk. 

 

Recently, industrially processed foods have started attracting researchers’ interest. This is especially the case with ultra-processed foods. Ultra-processed foods are formulations made mostly or entirely from derived substances and various additives with few intact unprocessed or minimally processed food components (Hedrih, 2023; Monteiro et al., 2019).

These foods typically contain artificial additives, preservatives, and flavor enhancers. Additives include dyes, color stabilizers, non-sugar sweeteners, de-foaming, anti-caking or glazing agents, emulsifiers, or humectants. Examples of ultra-processed foods include instant noodles, artificial sweeteners, artificially sweetened beverages, sugary cereals, microwaveable meals, reconstituted meat products, sweet and savory packaged snacks, pre-prepared frozen dishes, and soft drinks (Hedrih, 2023) (see Figure 1).

 

%learn about nutrition mental health %The Center for Nutritional Psychology

Figure 1. Examples of ultra-processed foods

 

Many studies linked the consumption of ultra-processed foods with increased risks of various health conditions, including cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, depression, anxiety, and general risk of death from different causes (e.g., Lane et al., 2024). Some even propose that ultra-processed foods be classified as addictive substances (Gearhardt et al., 2023; Hedrih, 2023)

The current study


Study author Pauline Duquenne and her colleagues wanted to assess the association between the consumption of ultra-processed food and chronic insomnia. They hypothesized that a greater intake of ultra-processed foods would be associated with increased insomnia symptoms (Duquenne et al., 2024).

These authors analyzed data from NutriNet-Santé, an ongoing online study that started in France in 2009. NutriNet-Santé participants are adults who can comprehend written French. The data used in this analysis came from 38,570 participants. Their average age was 50 years, and 77% were females.

When they are included in the study and at regular intervals thereafter, NutriNet-Santé participants complete a battery of questionnaires about their lifestyle profiles, body measurements, physical activity, and health status.

Participants provided their dietary intake data every six months. On these occasions, the study asks them to complete three 24-hour dietary records over a two-week period. The days when dietary intake was recorded were not on consecutive days (see Figure 2).

 

%learn about nutrition mental health %The Center for Nutritional Psychology

Figure 2. Study Procedure (Duquenne et al., 2024)

 

Aside from this, the current analysis utilized assessments of participants’ chronic insomnia symptoms and their sociodemographic data.

Chronic insomnia is associated with anxiety, depression, and female gender


Results showed that 19.4% of participants had symptoms of chronic insomnia. These individuals were also more likely to show symptoms of depression and anxiety. Participants with chronic insomnia were more often females. Females were 84% of the chronic insomnia group and 75% of participants without chronic insomnia.

Because the sample was very large, associations with many other demographic and lifestyle factors were also detected, but these associations tended to be very small.

Individuals suffering from chronic insomnia tended to consume more ultra-processed foods


Ultra-processed foods constituted 16% of participants’ daily food intake. However, participants with chronic insomnia tended to consume more of this type of food. Statistical analysis showed that a 10% increase in daily intake of ultra-processed food corresponded to a 6% higher odds of suffering from chronic insomnia.

 

Participants with chronic insomnia tended to consume more ultra-processed foods.

 

This percentage differed somewhat between the sexes. Among men, a 10% higher daily intake of ultra-processed foods corresponded to a 9% higher odds of suffering from chronic insomnia. The increase in odds was 5% among women (see Figure 3).

 

%learn about nutrition mental health %The Center for Nutritional Psychology

Figure 3. Study findings (Duquenne et al., 2024)

 

Conclusion


Using a very large sample from the French-speaking population, this study demonstrates a link between ultraprocessed food consumption and the risk of chronic insomnia. Although the increased risk reported in this study is only slight, this finding adds to the growing body of evidence associating the consumption of ultra-processed foods with adverse health outcomes.

However, it should be noted that the design of this study does not allow any cause-and-effect conclusions to be drawn from the results. While it is possible that increased consumption of ultra-processed food increases the risk of chronic insomnia, it is also possible that chronic insomnia or factors leading to chronic insomnia make a person more likely to consume ultra-processed foods (e.g., because they are readily available or highly palatable). Further studies are needed to clarify the nature of the observed links.

The paper “The association between ultra-processed food consumption and chronic insomnia in the NutriNet-Santé Study” was authored by Pauline Duquenne, Julia Capperella, Léopold K. Fezeu, Bernard Srour, Giada Benasi, Serge Hercberg, Mathilde Touvier, Valentina A. Andreeva, and Marie-Pierre St-Onge.

 

References

Camprodon-Boadas, P., Gil-Dominguez, A., De La Serna, E., Sugranyes, G., Lázaro, I., & Baeza, I. (2024). Mediterranean Diet and Mental Health in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review. Nutrition Reviews, nuae053. https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuae053

Drake, C. L., Roehrs, T., & Roth, T. (2003). Insomnia causes, consequences, and therapeutics: An overview. Depression and Anxiety, 18(4), 163–176. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.10151

Duquenne, P., Capperella, J., Fezeu, L. K., Srour, B., Benasi, G., Hercberg, S., Touvier, M., Andreeva, V. A., & St-Onge, M.-P. (2024). The association between ultra-processed food consumption and chronic insomnia in the NutriNet-Santé Study. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, S2212267224000947. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2024.02.015

Gearhardt, A. N., Bueno, N. B., DiFeliceantonio, A. G., Roberto, C. A., Jiménez-Murcia, S., & Fernandez-Aranda, F. (2023). Social, clinical, and policy implications of ultra-processed food addiction. BMJ, e075354. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2023-075354

Hedrih, V. (2023). Scientists Propose that Ultra-Processed Foods be Classified as Addictive Substances. CNP Articles in Nutritional Psychology. https://www.nutritional-psychology.org/scientists-propose-that-ultra-processed-foods-be-classified-as-addictive-substances/

Hedrih, V. (2024, March 4). Researchers Identify Neural Pathways Transmitting Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Hunger. Nutritional Psychology. https://www.nutritional-psychology.org/researchers-identify-neural-pathways-transmitting-anti-inflammatory-effects-of-hunger/

Huang, Y., Chen, Z., Chen, B., Li, J., Yuan, X., Li, J., Wang, W., Dai, T., Chen, H., Wang, Y., Wang, R., Wang, P., Guo, J., Dong, Q., Liu, C., Wei, Q., Cao, D., & Liu, L. (2023). Dietary sugar consumption and health: Umbrella review. BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.), 381, e071609. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2022-071609

Insomnia – What Is Insomnia? | NHLBI, NIH. (2022, March 24). https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/insomnia

Lane, M. M., Gamage, E., Du, S., Ashtree, D. N., McGuinness, A. J., Gauci, S., Baker, P., Lawrence, M., Rebholz, C. M., Srour, B., Touvier, M., Jacka, F. N., O’Neil, A., Segasby, T., & Marx, W. (2024). Ultra-processed food exposure and adverse health outcomes: Umbrella review of epidemiological meta-analyses. BMJ, e077310. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2023-077310

Monteiro, C. A., Cannon, G., Levy, R. B., Moubarac, J. C., Louzada, M. L. C., Rauber, F., Khandpur, N., Cediel, G., Neri, D., Martinez-Steele, E., Baraldi, L. G., & Jaime, P. C. (2019). Ultra-processed foods: What they are and how to identify them. Public Health Nutrition, 22(5), 936–941. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980018003762

Roberts, R. E., Roberts, C. R., & Duong, H. T. (2008). Chronic Insomnia and Its Negative Consequences for Health and Functioning of Adolescents: A 12-Month Prospective Study. Journal of Adolescent Health, 42(3), 294–302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2007.09.016

Sofi, F., Cesari, F., Casini, A., Macchi, C., Abbate, R., & Gensini, G. (2014). Insomnia and risk of cardiovascular disease: A meta-analysis. European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, 21, 57–64. https://doi.org/10.1177/2047487312460020

Vgontzas, A. N., Liao, D., Pejovic, S., Calhoun, S., Karataraki, M., & Bixler, E. O. (2009). Insomnia With Objective Short Sleep Duration Is Associated With Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care, 32(11), 1980–1985. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc09-0284

Our Cognitive-Behavioral Relationship with Junk Food — Interoceptive Awareness to the Rescue?

Posted on by CNP Staff

Our diet-mental health relationship (DMHR) is complex. When it comes to taking control of our dietary intake patterns (from the inside out) and making conscious decisions to support our mood and psychological health, research shows that increasing something called our Interoceptive Awareness (IA) is a great place to start (Herbert et al., 2013).Many people know intuitively that eating unhealthy junk foods can lead them on a path to making more unhealthy food choices, but research is beginning to reveal the complex cognitive-behavioral processes showing us why. An increasing number of studies reveal that consuming processed sugary foods high in fat and sugar leads to changes in our brain’s cognitive-behavioral processes that change our brain function and influence us to eat more high fat/high sugar (HFHS) foods (Stevenson et al., 2020). This and other “reward-based” processes create “neuroadaptations” in our brain that further influence our eating behaviors and reinforce our food choices.

Junk food and cognitive-behavioral processes

A study by Dr. Stevenson and his colleagues found that merely adding extra junk food to our diet for as little as 7 days impairs our ability to control our appetite. A growing body of research is demonstrating that the structure in the brain responsible for this particular cognitive-behavioral process is the hippocampus. The hippocampus is best known for its role in learning and memory, and as it turns out, is the part of the brain that is most highly susceptible to influence by a HFHS diet.

This study, which was the first to demonstrate a causal role in the ability of a HFHS to directly affect hippocampal functioning, shows that the cognitive processes affected resulted in impaired appetite control, leading to an increased desire to consume HFHS foods —even when full. It turns out that in this same study, those who were eating the junk food addition in their diet performed worse on tests of learning and memory — processes of cognition that are controlled by the hippocampus.

Why are learning and memory involved in regulating appetite and driving our eating behavior? When we consume foods rich in processed fat and sugar, our hippocampus — the part of our brain involved in learning and memory activates brain functions that affect cognitive-behavioral processes involving liking/wanting, learning/remembering, and anticipating (many factors that relate to our cognitive control mechanisms and ensuing dietary intake behaviors).

These foods also stimulate reward pathways in the brain which release dopamine. Dopamine is the neurotransmitter involved in feeling pleasure, which is released in anticipation of a reward (Attuquayefio et al., 2017). This is particularly important because it enhances reward-related memories, strengthening memory-related synapses in the brain. 

This high-sensory experience of anticipation, pleasure and reward is encoded into our brain’s wiring of memories, making us more susceptible to choosing HFHS foods in the future. For some of us, if we listen carefully to our body’s sensations, we can become aware of what we feel in this process. 

 

What is interoception and what role does it play in this process?

Interoception — our body’s physiological internal sensory system providing us with information about the internal state of our body (Sharp et al., 2018) — is one of the six elements informing the field of Nutritional Psychology. The intrinsic approach mentioned above involves increasing our Interoceptive Awareness (IA) — our ability to identify, access, understand, and respond appropriately to our internal physiological signals. 

It turns out that IA can be an important path to self-regulation. By using IA to connect to our perception of the internal state of our body, we can become more aware of the highly orchestrated dance between our dietary intake, cognitive, and behavioral processes.

To learn more about the hippocampus’ role in regulating appetite, watch our Diet-Mental Health Break #1. 

To learn more about how cognition, behavior, and interoceptive processes play a role in the DMHR, take 110: Introduction to Nutritional Psychology Methods. 

 


References

Attuquayefio, T., Stevenson, R. J., Oaten, M. J., & Francis, H. M. (2017). A four-day western-style dietary intervention causes reductions in hippocampal-dependent learning and memory and interoceptive sensitivity. PloS One, 12(2), e0172645. 

Herbert, B. M., Blechert, J., Hautzinger, M., Matthias, E., & Herbert, C. (2013). Intuitive eating is associated with interoceptive sensitivity. Effects on body mass index. Appetite, 70, 22-30.

Powell A. (2018). Harvard researchers study how mindfulness may change the brain in depressed patients. Harvard Gazette. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2018/04/harvard-researchers-study-how-mindfulness-may-change-the-brain-in-depressed-patients/

Sharp, P. B., Sutton, B. P., Paul, E. J., et al. (2018). Mindfulness training induces structural connectome changes in insula networks. Sci Rep. 8(1):1-10.

Stevenson RJ, Francis HM, Attuquayefio T, et al. Hippocampal-dependent appetitive control is impaired by experimental exposure to a Western-style diet. R Soc Open Sci. 2020;7(2):191338.

Interoception in Nutritional Psychology

Posted on by CNP Staff

Is Interoception a missing Element in our understanding of an improved Diet-Mental Health Relationship?


What is Interoceptive Awareness (IA), how does it relate to the field of Nutritional Psychology, and how can it be used to improve our understanding of the Diet-Mental Health Relationship (DMHR)?

While you have likely heard of the five basic senses, there is one sense in particular that often escapes formal education. Brushed off as something that should be innate, Interoception refers to the senses we feel relating to the internal state of our body. Sometimes referred to as “the eighth sense,” Interoception provides awareness of the sensations arising inside our body – like from a growling stomach, an increased heart rate, or the physical feelings we experience inside our body when anticipating a super tasty treat. The field of Nutritional Psychology (NP) considers Interoception to be an important factor in understanding the effects that our dietary intake patterns can have on our mood, behavior, and mental health.

It can sometimes be difficult to discern exactly what we are sensing, feeling, and needing in relation to our dietary intake choices and patterns. When combined with the growing landscape of highly palatable foods available, we can find ourselves facing self-regulation challenges that cause us to crave more highly palatable foods, and less of the nutritious foods supportive of our brain, our psychological health, and our behavior.¹ In the end, reaching for these foods provides a somewhat satisfying “quick-fix,” but also affects the brain’s interoceptive functioning, which in turn, furthers our appetite for highly palatable foods.²

Building skills in Interoceptive Awareness (IA) is a Nutritional Psychology tool that can be used to help us feel less reactive when reaching for food. Approaching food from the perspective of what is needed to feel good, instead of in reaction to the need to satisfy a craving, can be a key element in supporting our mood, behavior and mental health, and improving our Diet-Mental Health Relationship (DMHR).  Less nutritious foods have their place in our diets when we’ve built cognitive, perceptual, behavioral, psychological and interoceptive skills that support us in making conscious choices in our daily dietary intake patterns. 

The field of Nutritional Psychology builds Interoceptive Awareness (IA) in individuals to increase their understanding of the bodily sensations they experience in response to their dietary intake patterns and habits. This awareness can lead us to a way of approaching food that is influenced more by internal awareness, choices and decisions, rather than impulses and reactions — which is what Nutritional Psychology is all about.  

Citations

  1. Diet – Mental Health Break #1 | The Center For Nutritional Psychology – CNP https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_FJmhTS7HQ&t=4s. Based on study by Richard J. Stevenson et al. (2020) Hippocampal-dependent appetite control is impaired by experimental exposure to a western-style diet. Royal Society Open Science. DOI: 10.1098/rsos.191338.

 

  1. A four-day Western-style dietary intervention causes reductions in hippocampal-dependent learning and memory and interoceptive sensitivity. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28231304 or https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0172645&type=printable (full paper).

 

  1. CNP Research Library, Diet and Interoception Category: https://www.nutritional-psychology.org/research_studies/diet-and-interoception/

 

The Evolution of Food and Mood: A New Conceptualization in Mental Healthcare

Posted on by CNP Staff

The foods that comprise our dietary and nutrient intake patterns can influence virtually every aspect of our psychological functioning. Most people are aware of the mood-relaxing effects of tryptophan in turkey, and the energizing effects of caffeine, but few are aware of the more complex role that food, nutrients, and dietary-intake play in shaping our mood, behavior, and mental health.

The emerging field of Nutritional Psychiatry has focused on examining the direct relationship between diet and mental health, and the researchers comprising this area have successfully established a corollary, and recently causal link, between diet and certain aspects of mental health.

These findings, together with findings from other related fields have helped us to not only better understand the connection between food and mood, but also the mechanisms by which this connection exists. It turns out that “good mood food” is not merely anecdotal, but can be verified by peer-reviewed studies.

Some of the physiological mechanisms connecting our diet to our mental health include our diet’s ability to influence and impact: 1) the production and regulation of our neurotransmitters, 2) the composition of our Microbiome, 3) the directing of our immune and central nervous systems, and 4) the modulating of our inflammatory and oxidative processes.

Conceptualizing food and mood through a new lens

The psychological mechanisms connecting our diet with our mood and mental health involve examining the relationship between our dietary/nutrient intake patterns and the 1) psychological, 2) behavioral, 3) cognitive, 4) perceptual, 5) interoceptive, and 6) psychosocial elements of our psychological functioning.

Taken together, these physiological and psychological findings form a new conceptualization in the food-mood connection – one that gives a more in-depth understanding of the psychological components comprising the food-mood relationship. This conceptualization lies within a new interdisciplinary field referred to as Nutritional Psychology.

Nutritional Psychology (NP) is the area of study that examines the relationship between our dietary intake patterns and our mood, behavior, and mental health. NP conceptualizes the food-mood relationship in terms of the “Diet-Mental Health Relationship” (DMHR), which in NP terms includes the following elements:

%learn about nutrition mental health %The Center for Nutritional Psychology

Diet and Psychological elements: The relationship between our dietary-nutrient intake patterns and our psychological moods, emotions and affect (e.g., resilience, flourishing, creativity, negativity).

Diet and Behavioral elements: The behaviors, reactions, and choices we engage in resulting from thoughts and emotions influenced by our dietary-nutrient intake patterns and food environment (e.g., increased reactive behavior or changed dietary behavior patterns).

Diet and Perceptual elements: The relationship between dietary-nutrient intake patterns and the processing and interpretation of sensory stimuli (of which experiences, culture, and socioeconomic factors play a role).

Diet and Interoceptive elements: The internal physiological (somatic) sensations we experience in response to our dietary-nutrient intake patterns (discomfort, pain, energy, fatigue, desire).

Diet and Cognitive elements: The relationship between dietary-nutrient intake and our cognitive functions and capacity, including memory, attention, learning and appetite control.

Diet and Psychosocial elements: Examining the role that family, culture, community, society, and socioeconomic status play in relationship to our dietary-nutrient intake patterns.

When examining the effects of our dietary patterns through the broader lens of Nutritional Psychology, it becomes apparent that not only is there a broad effect of diet on most areas of mental-health related functioning, but there is ample evidence to substantiate the role that food plays in psychological functioning and mental health outcomes.

The field of Nutritional Psychology

Nutritional Psychology is an obvious and natural extension to the traditional practice of psychology. While psychology concerns itself with the psychological, cognitive, psychosocial, and behavioral aspects of mental health, Nutritional Psychology expands this model to include the contributions of dietary intake patterns to all aspects of psychological functioning and mental health.

Mental health professionals already hold the knowledge that contributes to positive mental health, but we believe that the current model is not taking into consideration the role of the Diet-Mental Health Relationship in supporting someone’s mental health. Nutritional Psychology is a natural adjunct to the traditional practice of psychology and stands at the forefront of this knowledge, working to provide another piece of the puzzle for improving mental health.

Findings in the DMHR have evolved beyond simply observing and documenting the role of food in our mood, behavior, and mental health. Through groundbreaking research and clinical studies, we can now take steps to define an area of study that takes control of this knowledge and uses it to improve our lives and potentially impact mental health issues around the globe.

To find out more about the emerging field of Nutritional Psychology, visit The Center for Nutritional Psychology (CNP).

For more information on the role of diet on immunity, visit the CNP Research Library category on Diet and Immunity. For more information on the role of dietary inflammation on mental health visit the CNP Research Library category on Diet and Inflammation.

________________________________________

–Nutritional Psychiatry

–Nutritional Psychology

–Diet-Mental Heath Relationship (DMHR)

–Diet and psychological

–Diet and behavioral

–Diet and perceptual

–Diet and interoceptive

–Diet and cognitive

–Diet and psychosocial

–Nutritional Psychology

–The Center for Nutritional Psychology (CNP)

Nutritional Psychology: Towards the Development of a New Integrated Model of Mental Healthcare

Posted on by CNP Staff

So many of us have powerful feelings and experiences related to the foods we eat. Yet many of these experiences aren’t validated through research, nor are they adequately addressed within the current mental healthcare model. The Center for Nutritional Psychology (CNP) exists to validate these experiences, and to support the development of a newly integrated approach to mental healthcare that supports the human-diet relationship.

Many of us feel enthusiastic when new studies are published that connect diet with mental health. Yet we wonder where these studies will go, and how they will be put to use in a way that directly improves our mental health. Will they result in changes that positively impact education, training and healthcare? Or will they fade back into the research community from which they came?

CNP knows it takes more than one study to create change – it takes a thousand. It also requires finding a way to turn the findings from these studies into action — action that leads to the development of measurable and impactful tools and concepts that can be used by the population that needs them — us all.

That’s why we’ve collected a thousand studies from around the world, each examining ways in which our diet if affecting our mood, behavior, and our mental health.  We’ve consolidated these elements into an online curated research library that provides conceptualization in how these elements connect. Together, these studies validate the human experience in relation to diet and point to the need for innovation in our current mental healthcare model.

Along with conceptualization, we’re also building methodology and tools that translate findings from the vast amount of research into actionable, tangible methods designed to create positive change in people’s Diet-Mental Health Relationship (and their lives).

The research studies in the CNP Research libraries have been conceptualized into 45+ different categories, which together, inform the conceptualization needed to develop the new field of Nutritional Psychology. These categories represent conceptualization in the psychological, cognitive, behavioral, cognitive-interoceptive, perceptual, and psychosocial elements comprising NP, and together, form our first understanding of the field of Nutritional Psychology.

The CNP Research libraries house four online research libraries containing links to the studies informing each element of the field. These libraries include:

The CNP Professional Research Library consolidates research in Nutritional Psychology for use by professionals, researchers, clinicians and practitioners in the elements of the Diet-Mental health Relationship relating to Nutritional Psychology.

The CNP Parent Research Library consolidates research in the child/adolescent diet-mental health relationship and is a resource for parents as well as professionals working with the child and adolescent/youth populations.

The CNP Child and Adolescent Cooking Research Library consolidates research illuminating the relationship between cooking in childhood and adolescence and physical and mental health).

The CNP Neurodevelopmental Research library consolidates research in how diet impacts neurodevelopmental development (i.e., ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder etc.).

What is Nutritional Psychology and how can it get us moving forward?

Nutritional Psychology (NP) examines the relationship between dietary (and nutrient) intake and psychological, behavioral, cognitive, cognitive-interoceptive, perceptual and psychosocial functioning.

NP is an applied discipline that provides individuals with skills and understanding in how their dietary intake may be playing a role in their mood, behavior and mental health. NP incorporates elements from education, nutrition, and psychology.

CNP exists to support the development of the field of Nutritional Psychology. In addition to consolidating research informing the field, we are developing methodology and educational curriculum for professionals, parents, and children, and advocating for a new and integrated model of mental healthcare that includes a nutritional component to mental healthcare by 2030.

The Advocacy Component to Nutritional Psychology

CNP’s provides a venue for professionals, students, organizations and interested individuals to advocate for this new model of mental healthcare by offering a brief, 2-minute online way of advocating through our website (https://www.nutritional-psychology.org/advocating-nutritional/). We are consolidating this advocacy data and using it to inform universities, healthcare institutions, insurance companies, and policy-makers of the need for a nutritional component to mental healthcare.

The Faces of NP: Capturing individual experience to increase social connection and facilitate awareness of the DMHR

We believe that a new, integrated model of mental healthcare requires not only consolidation of research in the areas encompassing the relationship between nutrition and mental health, but insight into the individual experience of the individuals who can benefit from this care. It also requires a broader social support system that destigmatizes and illuminate’s people’s struggles with food (whether they involve over- or under-nutrition), connecting individuals in their Diet-mental Health Journey.

To capture this personal experience and increase connectivity, CNP has created The Faces of Nutritional Psychology. The Faces of NP is a collection of personal stories written by people who have experienced positive shifts in their psychological, emotional, and mental well-being in response to improving their dietary intake patterns. These written stories inspire and encourage others to improve their own dietary patterns, and in doing so, help them to better their Diet-Mental Health Relationship. CNP considers this information as a component of the new way forward into a new integrated nutritional model of mental healthcare.

NP Diet-Mental Health Break (DMHB) Animated Videos

CNP’s “Diet-Mental Health Breaks” are monthly, 2-minute videos that explain cutting-edge research through brief and engaging animated videos. These DMHB’s are designed to increase individuals’ awareness of the Diet-Mental Health Relationship (DMHR) and can be used by educators to teach their students, professionals to increase patient/client awareness, or individuals to increase their personal knowledge of how their diet may be impacting their mood, behavior, or mental health.

Visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_FJmhTS7HQ&t=8s to watch your first DMHB.

Formalized Education in Nutritional Psychology

There is a crucial need to deliver better education to clinicians (and the public) about the role that dietary (and nutrient) intake play in supporting our mood, behavior, and mental health. CNP is the developer of the first university-based, accredited curriculum in Nutritional Psychology. The Certificate in Nutritional Psychology began in 2008 and evolved over a 12-year period to include a 7-course program dedicated to providing mental health professionals, educators, dietitians, health coaches, and counselors with formal curriculum in Nutritional Psychology. This long-standing program is currently being updated to account for the vastly increasing information consolidated by CNP, and will be available through an online platform in 2021.

Curriculum for University Students

This NP curriculum is designed for college and university instructors to introduce NP methodology into their undergraduate curriculum in nutrition, psychology or health science courses. See https://www.nutritional-psychology.org/cnp-education/ for more information.

Curriculum for Professionals

This curriculum is for professionals working with clients in a mental health or nutrition setting. Curriculum presents research informing the field, concepts, NP methodology, and client-oriented psychoeducation that increases understanding of the Diet-mental Health Relationship (DMHR).

Curriculum for Kids

This online animated curriculum is designed to help children develop an internal awareness of the effects their diet may be having on their mood, behavior and mental health. The curriculum is designed to be engaging and novel, while instilling them with new cognitive and perceptual skills that increase their awareness of how to eat to feel good (i.e., to support their positive mental health).

Answers to your Questions

We invite you to learn more about Nutritional Psychology by visiting https://www.nutritional-psychology.org. If you are passionate about NP, and have a background you feel can lend expertise to our mission, we invite you to contact us so we can discuss ways for you to get involved with the mission. Contact us through the website, or email info@nutritional-psychology.org.

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