The effect of antidepressant use on dietary inflammatory index in patients diagnosed with depression and anxiety

This study was conducted to calculate the dietary inflammatory index of patients diagnosed with depression and anxiety and receiving antidepressant drug treatment and compare them with the duration of antidepressant drug use, and to observe the food preferences and eating behaviors of patients using antidepressant drugs according to the remission status of psychiatric symptoms. A total of 61 individuals (41 female, 20 male) who were diagnosed with depression and/or anxiety disorder and received antidepressant drug treatment and who applied to Başkent University Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic in Ankara city center between March and May 2025 were included in the study. The sociodemographic characteristics, health status, and nutritional habits of the individuals were recorded in the questionnaire form. Data were collected by face-to-face survey method; three-day food consumption records were taken to determine the individuals' anthropometric measurements, daily energy, macro and micronutrient intake levels, and to calculate the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII). To evaluate the eating behaviors of the individuals, the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ-Tr21), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) to determine the depression levels and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) to determine the anxiety levels were given. The individuals were divided into three groups according to the duration of antidepressant drug treatment as 0–1 month, 1≤ and <6 months and  6 months and above. No significant relationship was found between the duration of antidepressant drug use and age, gender and marital status (p>0.05). No statistically significant relationship was found between the duration of antidepressant drug use and BMI levels (p>0.05). A significant relationship was found between the duration of antidepressant drug use and appetite (p<0.05). No statistically significant relationship was found between the Cognitive Eating, Emotional Eating and Uncontrolled Eating scores of the individuals and the duration of antidepressant medication use (p>0.05). Energy, macro and micronutrient intakes of the individuals were evaluated according to their gender and it was found that energy intake was higher in male individuals and it was found to be statistically significant (p<0.001). It was found that male individuals had higher carbohydrate (p<0.005), protein (p<0.005), fat (p<0.005), saturated fatty acid (p<0.005), monounsaturated fatty acid (p<0.005), polyunsaturated fatty acid (p<0.005), omega-6 fatty acid (p<0.005) intakes than female individuals and it was found to be statistically significant (p<0.05). No significant difference was found between the genders in terms of omega-3 fatty acid, cholesterol and trans fatty acid intakes of the individuals (p>0.05). When the micronutrient intakes of the individuals were examined according to their gender; it was found that the intakes of vitamin E (p<0.005), vitamin B3 (p<0.05), folate (p<0.05), iron (p<0.005), magnesium (p<0.005), zinc (p<0.005), phosphorus (p<0.005), sodium (p<0.005), potassium (p<0.05), iodine (p<0.05) were higher in male individuals and it was statistically significant (p<0.05). No statistically significant difference was found between the intakes of vitamin A, vitamin D, B1, B2, B6, B12, vitamin C, selenium, calcium, vitamin K and gender (p>0.05). No statistically significant result was found between the duration of antidepressant drug use of the individuals and energy, macro and micro nutrients (p>0.05). No significant relationship was found between the individuals' DII scores and the duration of antidepressant drug use (p>0.05). No significant relationship was found between the Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory and the duration of antidepressant drug use and DII scores (p>0.05). A significant positive relationship was found between BDI and BAI (p<0.05). No significant relationship was found between the individuals' TFEQ-Tr21 sub-dimensions Cognitive Eating, Emotional Eating and Uncontrolled Eating scores and DII (p>0.05). In conclusion, this study revealed that the duration of antidepressant drug treatment may create significant trends on individuals' eating behaviors, mental health status and dietary inflammatory index. The findings emphasize the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in the management of depression and anxiety disorders, especially considering the anti-inflammatory properties of the diet.