A trendy weight loss regime could also help alleviate depression symptoms among students, new research suggests.
Scientists discovered a link between following the keto diet for at least ten weeks and approximately a 70 per cent reduction in depression symptoms among university students.
The high-fat, extremely low-carbohydrate, moderate-protein ketogenic – or keto – eating plan is crafted to push the body into a metabolic condition known as ketosis, where it utilises fat for fuel rather than carbohydrates.
READ MORE: Phone charging habit nearly everyone has ‘one of worst things you can do’
READ MORE: Aleksandar Mitrovic set to complete transfer after shock Birmingham City links
READ MORE: Oldbury demonstration live as community rally in support of rape victim
Famous followers of the dietary approach include Gwyneth Paltrow, Halle Berry and Kourtney Kardashian.
In addition to the decline in self-reported and clinician-assessed depression, scientists observed that students’ overall wellbeing rose nearly three-fold and their performance enhanced across various cognitive assessments.
All participants except one also shed weight.
The 16 students who finished the pilot study were taking medication, receiving counselling, or both for major depressive disorder prior to starting the keto regime.
Scientists say their results, published in the journal Translational Psychiatry, indicate that reaching nutritional ketosis through diet represents a “feasible adjunctive therapy” for depression and clear the path for a more extensive trial.
The pilot research lacked a non-keto control group for comparison purposes.
Earlier studies have indicated that medications and counselling decrease depressive symptoms by roughly 50% within a comparable timeframe. Study lead author Prof Jeff Volek, from The Ohio State University in the US, said: “So many people are suffering right now, so it’s rewarding to potentially bring forward a solution.
“There is more science yet to do, but because there is evidence of a benefit, expanding accessibility to a well-formulated ketogenic diet as an augmentation to treatment for depression is something to think about.”
Prof Volek’s laboratory collaborated with Ohio State mental health specialists to devise and conduct the trial involving young adults at the University.
Study co-author Dr Ryan Patel, a psychiatrist within Ohio State’s Office of Student Life Counselling and Consultation Service, revealed that approximately 40 per cent of university students experience depressive symptoms, with roughly half receiving some form of treatment.
He said: “We have a treatment gap in that we have more students suffering from mental health concerns than can feasibly receive professional treatment.
“There is a need for finding ways of helping students on a large scale. And nutrition is one way we can do that.”
A total of 24 students were recruited for the trial, with 16 students – ten women and six men averaging age 24 – completing the full study.
Participants were given comprehensive instruction on the ketogenic diet, comprising fewer than 50 grams of carbohydrates daily alongside increased fat and moderate protein consumption. The ketogenic diet, or keto diet as it’s commonly known, transforms fat into ketones which are used by the body and brain cells as an alternative to glucose.
This puts the body in a state of ‘nutritional ketosis’, where it has increased access to ketones for both fuel and signalling.
Drew Decker, the study’s lead author and a graduate student in Prof Volek’s lab, emphasised: “It was very important to make sure participants knew what they were getting themselves into.”
He added: “And a big part of increasing chances for adherence to the diet was talking to each individual about what they like and don’t like to eat so we could tailor some suggestions for how they could structure their diet.”
To assist participants, the team provided 10 complete starter meals, consistent advice and snacks for the first half of the trial, and maintained communication throughout the study via a private app.
Participants were advised to eat when they felt hungry and stop eating when they were full, without worrying about calorie counting.
At the beginning and throughout the 10 to 12 week period, the students reported symptoms of depression.
They also underwent a series of tests assessing episodic and working memory, processing speed, executive function, and attention and inhibitory control.
Co-author Professor Jennifer Cheavens supervised the clinical assessments of participants before and during the trial.
She said: “One of the things we really wanted to make sure of is that we were providing a treatment for people who met the diagnostic criteria for having major depressive disorder.
“Each participant had a two-and-a-half-hour interview at the beginning, and then weekly assessments of their symptoms.”
The results revealed self-reported depression scores dropped by 35 per cent by the second week and achieved 67 per cent improvement at weeks ten to 12.
Whilst the severity of symptoms varied amongst participants, none experienced a deterioration in their condition.
Collectively, those taking part shed an average of 11lbs whilst their body fat reduced by 2.4 per cent – with the majority surpassing the “clinically significant” threshold of five per cent weight reduction.
Dr Patel, who monitored participants throughout the study, characterised the scale of improvement in depressive symptoms associated with the keto diet as “notable”.
He said: “The average effect size for medications and counselling after 12 weeks is about 50 per cent, and we saw a substantially greater result.
“That is an impressive finding, that across the board, in this real-world setting, everybody got better, and across the board, our participants did not need more treatment or emergency intervention.”
Prof Volek said: “The idea is that the ketogenic diet is working through a variety of potentially different mechanisms – there’s a whole range of physiological metabolic adaptations to the diet that could overlap with some of the pathophysiology of depression.”
He further commented: “This is one of the first really well-controlled studies and it has limitations, but the results encourage us to want to keep pursuing it.”