As clearly explained already, our blog focuses on the global health topic of mental illnesses. With this blog we are trying to understand the major problems of global mental health. However, there are many more important international health topics, such as the topic of our classmates’ blog: food security. Their blog got me thinking about the big obstacle of malnutrition, which I want to relate to topic of mental health. In this post, I would like to explore different types of relationships between nutrition & mental health.
Firstly, I will start with malnutrition specifically in children. Child malnutrition continues to have a high prevalence in the world, particularly in low and middle income countries. Different studies have highlighted that the critical period of brain development occurs in the first 1000 days after fertilization. In this period, nutritional status affects brain growth enormously and research has shown that malnutrition during that prenatal stage up to 2 years of life could cause permanent deficits in brain and behavioral function. (Huang et al, 2013) Thus, the mothers’ nutrition is also very important in the mental health of a child. More evidence has shown that prenatal exposure to famine was associated with a twofold increased risk of schizophrenia, and also increased risk at other mental disorders. However, nutrition is not only very important in early life, but also later. In adolescents, the western diet has been implicated in poorer behavioral outcomes compared to a diet with higher intake of fresh fruit and green vegetables. (Oddy et al, 2009)
On the contrary, this connection can also be reversed. Many studies have shown the relationship between malnutrition as a consequence of lower mental health. Especially among older people, impaired mental health was strongly associated with a risk at malnutrition. (Kvamme, Gronli, Florholmen, Jacobsen, 2011) Specifically, clear links between poor cognitive status and deficiencies of vitamin C, B2 and B12 were shown. Another example of poor mental health causing poor nutritional status is that many people suffering from depression present with anorexia or weight loss. This can either be a direct result of the psychiatric disease or a consequence of the side effects of depression medication. (Aboyomi, Hackett, 2004)
When regarding this reversed side, it can also become a big problem again for the offspring. Research has shown that mothers suffering from poor mental health have a higher chance on their children being malnourished. (Torres de Miranda et al., 1996) These mothers have mental illnesses, which can lead to low care-taking and consequent malnutrition of their kids. A study carried out in Brazil showed the importance of this matter; maternal common mental disorders doubled the risk of moderate or severe malnutrition in their children. (Santos et al., 2011) On the other hand, studies have also shown that mothers with malnourished children have more emotional problems than their controls.
So why is it important to realize these different interrelationships of nutritional health status and mental health status? If one of these global health problems could be prevented or lowered, the other might be helped too. For example, if mothers get better nutrition and are educated about the importance of nutrition, future mental illnesses could be prevented.
By Violette
Abayomi, J., Hackett, A. (2004) Assessment of malnutrition in mental health clients: nurses’ judgement vs. a nutrition risk tool. Journal of Advance Nursing, 45:430-437. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2648.2003.02926.x
Huang, C., Philips, M., Zhang, Y., Zhang, J., Shi, Q., Song, Z., Ding, Z., Pang, S., Martorell, R. (2013) Malnutrition in early life and adult mental health: Evidence from a natural experiment. Social Science & Medicine, 97:249-266. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.09.051
Kvamme, J., Gronli, O., Florholmen, J., Jacobsen, B. (2011) Risk of malnutrition is associated with mental health symptoms in community living elderly men and women: The Tromsø Study. BMC Psychiatry, 11:112. doi:10.1186/1471-244X-11-112
Oddy, W., Robinson, M., Ambrosini, G., O’Sullivan, T., de Klerk, N., Beilin, L., Zubrick, S., Stanly, F. (2009) The association between dietary patterns and mental health in early adolescence. Preventive medicine, 49:39-44. doi:10.1016/j.ypmed.2009.05.009.
Santos, D.S., Santos, D.N., Silva, R., Hasselmann, M., Barreto, M. (2011)
Maternal common mental disorders and malnutrition in children: a case–control study. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 46:543-548. doi:10.1007/s00127-010-0220-4
Torres de Miranda, C., Turecki, G., Mari, J., Andreoli, S., Marcolim, M., Goihman, S., Puccini, R., Strom, B., Berlin, J. (1996) Mental Health of the Mothers of Malnourished children. International Journal of Epidemiology, 25:128-133.
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