Effect of cholesterol-lowering diets on indices of depression and hostility

Increased injury deaths have been reported among treatment groups in cholesterol lowering trials, leading to speculation that lipid lowering may result in behavioral disorders. We investigated this in 319 men enrolled in a 2-year trial of lipid lowering diets who completed measures of depression and hostility at entry and 24 months later. Mean Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scores were lower after 24 months (3.8 versus 3.3,p<0.05) and Symptom Checklist 90-Revised (SCL-90) depression and hostility scores were unchanged. After adjustment for potential confounding, 24-month hostility and BDI scores were unrelated to lipid changes. A small inverse association of borderline statistical significance (B=0.034,p=0.08) was noted between 24-month SCL-90 depression scores and lipid changes. Lipid lowering diets had no significant adverse effect on psychological function and are consistent with current dietary recommendations.