Unsaturated fat intakes and mental health outcomes in young women from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Heath
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To determine if associations exist between a range of unsaturated fatty acid intakes and mental health outcomes.
DESIGN: Cross-sectional data analysis of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH) Young Cohort Survey 3 that included the validated seventy-four-item Dietary Questionnaire for Epidemiological Studies FFQ, validated mental health scales and self-report questions on depression and anxiety.
SETTING: Australia, 2003.
SUBJECTS: A nationally representative sample of young Australian women (25-30 years) from ALSWH. The 7635 women with plausible energy intakes (>4·5 but <20·0 MJ/d) were included in the analyses.
RESULTS: Adjusted logistic regression analyses found statistically significant associations between higher intakes of α-linolenic acid and decreased likelihood of depressive symptoms indicated by the ten-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CESD-10; OR=0·77; 95% CI 0·60, 0·99; P=0·040) and the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) mental health subscale (OR=0·73 95% CI 0·56, 0·96; P=0·024). Furthermore, higher intakes of n-6 fatty acids (OR=0·96, 95% CI 0·93, 0·99; P=0·019) and linoleic acid (OR=0·96, 95% CI 0·93, 0·99; P=0·020) were associated with decreased likelihood of self-reported diagnosed anxiety and higher intakes of n-9 fatty acids (OR=1·02, 95% CI 1·00, 1·04; P=0·041) and oleic acid (OR=1·02, 95% CI 1·00, 1·05; P=0·046) were associated with increased likelihood of self-reported diagnosed anxiety.…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a cross-sectional, done in people. Its evidence level is 4 of 5 (Low · observational). Observational designs can show an association but not prove cause. Reported size: 7,635 participants or records.
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