Diet has been comparatively neglected as a potential risk factor for mental disorders. Felice Jacka was awarded a PhD fellowship to research the association of diet with depression and anxiety in a community sample of 1046 women (Jacka et al., 2010). She scored dietary patterns as “traditional”, “western” and “modern”.

After controlling for a range of potential confounders, the “traditional” diet (mainly consisting of vegetables, fruit, beef, lamb, fish and whole grain foods) was associated with lower risk, while the “western” diet (mainly consisting of meat pies, processed meats, pizza, chips, hamburgers, white bread, sugar, flavoured milk and beer) was associated with higher risk.

Associate Professor Felice Jacka – Ian Scott PhD Scholar (2005 – 2008) Mental Health (20 – 20)