Proper Nutrition=Less Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Depression

 In Anxiety/Depression/Mental Health, Naturopathic News

“If you had a heart attack, someone on your health-care team would ask you about what you eat—but those conversations are often absent from mental health care,” says Monique Aucoin ND, MSc.* 

Studies have shown that proper nutrition can lead to a reduced risk of depression and improved symptoms of major depressive disorder. However, research into the effect of nutrition on anxiety is limited. Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) affects 8.7% of Canadians and 3.1% of Americans—women are affected 2x more than men. Dr. Aucoin and colleagues present a first of its kind study in the journal of Nutritional Neuroscience: Over 440 women were interested in enrollment, 46 met the DMs-5 criteria and were confirmed by a psychiatrist to have GAD. The 46 women attended a mean of 6.4 one-on-one sessions with a naturopathic doctor over 12 weeks and then completed a questionnaire.  

The 12-week intervention included: 

  • Dietary counseling: 
  • Motivational interviewing: goal setting, action planning, personalized recommendations 
  • Omega-3 supplements 
  • Mediterranean diet education 
  • Activities: mindful eating, nonhunger food cravings 

“Our findings highlight how diet-based interventions can complement traditional treatments, especially for those who may not fully respond to conventional approaches,” says psychiatrist Laura LaChance, MD, MSc.**  

Findings include:  

  • 84% of participants strongly agreed that “My experience during this study was positive” 
  • Mean anxiety symptom severity score: 26.2 at baseline, 11.0 at week 12 
  • Diet quality score: 7.2 at baseline, 10.5 at week 12 
  • Mean baseline anxiety score in women who were waitlisted: 29.3 at baseline, 26.8 at week 12 
  • Average Beck Anxiety Inventory score = 55% reduction  

A large-scale study is called for. 

Sources: 

Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine. First-Ever Study of its Kind Explores the Role of Nutrition in Managing Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Sep 26, 2024.

Aucoin et al. Dietary counseling plus omega-3 supplementation in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder: results of a randomized wait-list controlled pilot trial (the ‘EASe-GAD Trial’). Nutritional Neuroscience. 2024:1-14. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1028415X.2024.2403901. 

* Senior Research Fellow at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM) and Adjunct Professor at the University of Guelph 

**Study co-investigator and Adjunct Research Scientist from CCNM 

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