• Seanna E McMartin, Felice N Jacka, and Ian Colman.
• Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
• Prev Med. 2013 Mar 1; 56 (3-4): 225-30.

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to examine the association between fruit and vegetable intake (FVI) and mental health disorders.MethodThis study used data from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), a repeated cross-sectional study of Canadians with five waves between 2000 until 2009 (n=296,121 aged 12 years or older). FVI was assessed based on frequency of consumption. The primary outcome was a major depressive episode over the previous 12 months. Logistic regression models adjusted for age, gender, household income, education, physical activity, chronic illness and smoking.ResultsIn the first wave, greater FVI was significantly associated with lower odds of depression (OR: 0.85 95% CI:0.78-0.92). A combined estimate of all 5 waves demonstrated similar results (OR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.71-0.75). Relative to those with the lowest FVI, those with the greatest FVI also had significantly lower odds of suffering from distress (OR: 0.87 95% CI: 0.78-0.98). These results were consistent across other waves. Perceived poor mental health status and previous diagnosis of a mood disorder and anxiety disorder also demonstrated statistically significant inverse associations with FVI (all p<0.05).ConclusionThese findings suggest a potentially important role of a healthy diet in the prevention of depression and anxiety.Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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