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Dietary inflammatory potential in depressive symptoms in older Chinese people in Hong Kong: a cohort study
Agassi Chun Wai Wong1, Xue Yang1, Timothy Chi Yui Kwok2,3
1Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Purpose:
Depression is a highly prevalent mental disorder that is associated with severe comorbidity. As individuals continue to age, the adverse effects of depression may worsen. Emerging studies from Western cultures have indicated that the elevated Dietary Inflammatory potential in the everyday diet might be associated with depression, but little is known about the Asian Chinese population.
Methods:
A sample of 3,740 elderly Chinese subjects from the Hong Kong Mr and Ms Os project was followed for 7 years. To assess changes in depressive symptoms, the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) was employed, and the baseline food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was used to calculate the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII). The Generalized Linear Mixed Model (GLMM) was used to investigate the longitudinal effects of DII on depressive symptoms. Inverse probability weighting was used to address attrition bias.
Results:
Significant associations were observed between DII and depressive symptoms. Higher DII was associated with higher depressive symptoms (β = 0.228 per unit increase) across both sexes, particularly in females. A similar observation was observed when comparing lower DII vs. higher DII by tertile.
Conclusion:
This study identified the positive associations between dietary inflammatory potential and depressive symptoms in the Chinese population. Further exploration of the sex difference is warranted. Limitations include a single dietary assessment and substantial attrition.
