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Nutrition in depression: eating the way to recovery

Abstract:

Depression is a very frequent and debilitating mental disorder, which in recent years has become one of the leading causes of disability and a public health crisis, with a severe rise in prevalence, and very large direct and indirect economic costs. This situation has sparked a surge in the research for treatment alternatives for this disorder, in particular, lifestyle modifications, such as dietary interventions. Indeed, nutritional intake may have a significant impact in the neurobiology of mood regulation, chiefly by intervening in brain monoamine metabolism and modulating chronic, low-grade neuroinflammation. This review discusses current views on the role of dietary modifications for the treatment of depression, a form of “eating the way” to recovery, contrasting molecular neurobiological hypotheses and prominent epidemiological data.