Can eating junk food make you depressed?

Can eating junk food make you depressed?

We all love munching on chips and chocolate after school, but is all that sugary goodness leading us to being depressed? A study published last year by the British Journal of Psychiatry has solid evidence that regular consumption of junk food can in fact lead to depression. Yikes! But, on the other hand, eating whole and unprocessed foods helps to prevent depression.

The British Journal of Psychiatry surveyed over 3,000 men and women, asking them how often they ate certain foods over the past year. Answers were studied, and two distinct food patterns were found: the “whole food pattern” and the “processed food pattern.” The whole food pattern consisted of high intake of fruits, veggies and unprocessed foods, while the processed food pattern consisted of a high intake of fried foods, sweetened desserts, processed meat and overall highly processed foods.

Five years later, the same men and women were asked to complete a questionnaire designed to measure the symptoms of depression in the general population. And—you guessed it—those chicas who consumed more processed foods were at a higher risk for depression, while those who ate more whole foods were least likely to have depression.

Does this mean you should toss the cookies forever and trade them for carrots? Not exactly. While we can still enjoy chocolate during that time of the month, or a slice of cake at a party, choosing nuts over Nutter Butters and cantaloupe over candy will definitely be the best choice if you want to be a happier and healthier you.

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POSTED IN eating, healthy eating 101, how to cut out junk food, dealing with depression