New research suggests that french fries may be linked to depression

French fries — they’re greasy, starchy and a comfort food for many.

But reaching for fried foods may have a negative impact on mental health.

A research team in Hangzhou, China, found that frequent consumption of fried foods, especially fried potatoes, was linked with a 12% higher risk of anxiety and 7% higher risk of depression than in people who didn’t eat fried foods.

The link was more pronounced among young men and younger consumers.

Fried foods are known risk factors for obesity, high blood pressure and other health effects. These results “open an avenue in the significance of reducing fried food consumption for mental health,” according to the paper published Monday in the journal PNAS.

However, experts who study nutrition said the results are preliminary, and it’s not necessarily clear whether the fried foods were driving mental health issues, or people experiencing symptoms of depression or anxiety turned to fried foods.

The study evaluated 140,728 people over 11.3 years. After excluding participants diagnosed with depression within the first two years, a total of 8,294 cases of anxiety and 12,735 cases of depression were found in those that consumed fried food, while specifically fried potatoes were found to have a 2% increase in risk of depression over fried white meat.

The study had also found that the participants consuming more than one serving of fried food regularly were more likely to be younger men.

“The human component of this study may indicate just what it purports: that higher intake of fried food increases the risk of anxiety/depression,” said Dr. David Katz, a lifestyle medicine specialist who was not involved in the study, via email.

“However, the causal pathway could just as readily go the other way: people with anxiety/depression turn to ‘comfort food’ with increasing frequency for some semblance of relief,” added Katz, founder of the nonprofit True Health Initiative, a global coalition of experts dedicated to evidence-based lifestyle medicine.

Those with underlying symptoms of anxiety and depression could turn to comfort foods as a way of self-medicating, he said.

Unhealthy food and poor nutrition can lower one’s mood and progress a mental health condition, as found in a prior study cited within this new one.

The same goes for zebrafish

In the new study, the researchers suggest that acrylamide, a chemical formed during the frying process, especially in fried potatoes, is to blame for the higher risk of anxiety and depression.

In a separate paper referenced in the new study, the researchers exposed zebrafish to the chemical, finding that long-term exposure had caused the fish to dwell in dark zones within the tank, a common sign of a higher anxiety level in the fish.

The zebrafish had also displayed a reduced ability to explore their tanks and socialize, as they did not swim closely with other zebrafish, even though zebrafish are known to form schools with their species.

“Zebrafish were presumably chosen … because they were already known to be vulnerable to acrylamide toxicity, and because their behavioral responses to anxiety are established and consistent — offering a source of both biological and behavioral data,” Katz said.

Dr. Walter Willett said the results “should be regarded as very preliminary, especially the connection with fried food and acrylamide.”

Anxiety and depression on the rise

Zhejiang University researcher Yu Zhang, an author of the study, told CNN in an email that “there is no need to panic about the adverse effects of fried food.” But maintaining a healthy lifestyle and reducing consumption of fried foods may be helpful for mental health in additional to overall health.

The researchers had pointed to a recent rise in depression and anxiety worldwide, with 2020 seeing an increase of 27.6% and 25.6%, respectively. The World Health Organization also estimates that more than 5% of adults suffer from depression, globally, as noted in the paper.

By looking at the effects of fried food consumption in humans and acrylamide exposure in zebrafish, the researchers had compared the two to suggest that frequent consumption of the chemical commonly found in fried food could have a negative effect on mental health.

A lack of variety in food has also been shown to decrease well-being, according to Katz.

“If a take-away is needed it is simply that overall diet quality, and the selection of wholesome foods, matters profoundly to every aspect of health — mental and physical alike,” Katz said.

Willett said there’s also the possibility of reverse causation — that people may change their diets because they have depression or anxiety. “These mood changes are, in general, more difficult to study because they may come and go, unlike the diagnosis of a major cancer or heart attack, the study was not designed to address these challenges,” he said.

生词记录

greasy 油腻的；多油的，油污的；油性的

starchy 淀粉的；刻板的，拘谨的

comfort food 开心食品，安慰食品

pronounced 明显的，明确的

preliminary 初步的，预备性的，开始的

serving 一份，一客；现役的

component 组成部分，成分

purport 自称，标榜，声称

intake 摄入量

causal 因果关系

semblance 表象，假象；外观，外貌

coalition 联盟，同盟，联合体

dwell 居住，栖身

presumably 大概，可能

toxicity 毒性

established 著名的；已确立的；既定的

adverse 不利的，有害的

take-away 外卖；要点，从···中了解到的主要信息

wholesome 有益健康的，有益的，有道德的

causation 因果关系