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Effectiveness of dietary interventions in mental health treatment: A rapid review of reviews

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posted on 2022-10-25, 02:21 authored by T Burrows, S Teasdale, T Rocks, M Whatnall, J Schindlmayr, J Plain, Georgina LatimerGeorgina Latimer, M Roberton, D Harris, Adrienne ForsythAdrienne Forsyth
Aim: This rapid review of reviews aimed to determine the extent of research undertaken on the effectiveness of dietary interventions for individuals with a mental disorder. Methods: Three databases (MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Reviews and Cochrane Trials) were searched to February 2021 for systematic reviews including experimental studies assessing the effectiveness of dietary interventions with physical or mental health related outcomes in adults or children with one or more of: severe mental illness, depression or anxiety, eating disorders, or substance use disorder. Results are presented descriptively. Results: The number of included reviews was 46 (67% in severe mental illness, 20% in depression and anxiety, 7% in eating disorders, and 7% in substance use disorders). Most reviews were published since 2016 (59%), and included studies conducted in adults (63%). Interventions in the eating disorders and severe mental illness reviews were predominantly education and behaviour change, whereas interventions in the substance use disorders, and depression and anxiety reviews were predominantly supplementation (e.g. omega-3). Twenty-eight and twelve of the reviews respectively reported mental health and dietary outcomes for one or more included studies. Most reviews in severe mental illness, and depression and anxiety reported conclusions supporting the positive effects of dietary intervention, including positive effects on weight-related or mental health outcomes, and on mental health outcomes, respectively. Conclusions: A larger number of systematic reviews were identified which evaluated dietary interventions in individuals with severe mental illness, and depression and anxiety, compared with substance use disorders, and eating disorders. Dietary intervention is an important component of the treatment that should be available to individuals living with mental disorders, to support their physical and mental health.

Funding

National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator Grant: (Tracy Burrows); Dietitians Australia Subject Matter Leads (Tracy Burrows and Janice Plain).

History

Publication Date

2022-07-01

Journal

Nutrition and Dietetics

Volume

79

Issue

3

Pagination

(p. 279-290)

Publisher

Wiley

ISSN

1446-6368

Rights Statement

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made. © 2022 The Authors. Nutrition & Dietetics published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Dietitians Australia.

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