Consumption of High-Energy Food and Sugar Shows a Strong Positive Association with Low Mood in Control Subjects and Depressed Patients

Dobai, Tabita and Baksa, Dániel and Gonda, Xénia and Juhász, Gabriella and Eszlári, Nóra and Bagdy, György (2025) Consumption of High-Energy Food and Sugar Shows a Strong Positive Association with Low Mood in Control Subjects and Depressed Patients. NUTRIENTS, 17 (16). No.-2594. ISSN 2072-6643

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Abstract

Background/Objectives: Eating has been suggested to be one of the most important hedonic behaviors. Anhedonia, a symptom of depression, may be associated with decreased food intake, although increase of food intake could be a symptom of depression as well. Our aim was to explore the association of mood-related symptoms and anhedonia with carbohydrate and sugar intake in never-depressed control persons and depressed patients. Methods: In a large UK Biobank sample (>100,000), two-way regression models were constructed: first, for two lifetime depression variables (ICD-10 and CIDI), two current depression scores (PHQ-9 and a four-item score), and two anhedonia items as outcomes with 14 nutrient predictors, and then in the opposite direction, with nutrients as outcomes. Results: Energy density, free sugar, lactose, other sugars, and sucrose intake were higher, while fructose and glucose intake were lower in depressed patients compared to control subjects. Strong positive associations were found among energy measures, carbohydrate, free sugar, lactose, maltose, other sugars, and sucrose intake and almost all depression measures, including anhedonia. These associations were similar in the total sample and in the never-depressed control subjects as well. In contrast, fructose and glucose intake showed negative associations with the majority of the above measures. Sex, age, BMI, and Townsend deprivation index as predictors failed to show major effects on these associations. Conclusions: Our results suggest that consumption of high-energy food and sugar may be generally employed to alleviate mood disturbances and anhedonia in high-income countries by depressed patients and by never-depressed subjects, although the effects of sugars on depression cannot be ruled out.

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