The Association Between Dietary Insulin Index and Load With Mental Health
Abstract Background: Depression, anxiety, and stress are common mental problems in different populations. The aim of this cross-sectional study is to investigate the association between dietary insulin index (DII) and insulin load (DIL) and psychological disorders. Method: Participants (n = 10,000) aged 20-69 were randomly selected from 200 clusters in Yazd from the recruitment phase of Yazd Health Study. Dietary intake of study participants was collected by a reliable and validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) consisting of 178 food items. DII and DIL were calculated from the FFQ data using previously published reference values. To assess psychological disorders an Iranian validated short version of a self-reported questionnaire (Depression Anxiety Stress Scales 21 [DASS21]) was used.Results: No significant association was observed between DIL and DII with odds of depression or anxiety in crude and adjusted models. The individuals in the highest quartiles of DIL had the lowest odds of stress (OR: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.48–1.01, P-trend = 0.047). This association remained significant after adjustment for potential confounders in model II (OR: 0.38; 95% CI: 0.16–0.91, P-trend = 0.039) and the third and final model (OR: 0.39; 95% CI: 0.16–0.91, P-trend = 0.041).Conclusion: Overall, consumption of foods with higher II as well as IL was associated with lower feelings of stress; however, no significant relation was observed between DII or DIL and risk of depression and anxiety. Further studies with longitudinal design are needed to confirm these results.