How to Ward Off Depression? Study Says Eat More Fish!

A new study showed that eating more fish can help people prevent depression.

Live Science reported that Chinese researchers from the Medical College of Qingdao University in Shandong, China, analyzed 26 studies involving more than 150,000 individuals and found that there was a 17% reduction in the risk of depression among people who ate the most fish. The researchers cited that the fatty acids present in fish can be beneficial in brain activity, thereby preventing depression significantly among people who consumed fish. Omega-three fatty acids can affect serotonin and dopamine activity, the two are chemicals in the brain that are known to have an impact on mood and depression.

“Higher fish consumption may be beneficial in the primary prevention of depression,” Professor Dongfeng Zhang said in the same Live Science report. “Future studies are needed to further investigate whether this association varies according to the type of fish."

According to the researchers, several studies have been done in the past focusing on the relationship between fish consumption and depression, although the findings have been mixed. They gathered data from all relevant studies they can get since 2001. They observed that studies done in Europe particularly indicated the benefit that fish consumption provides in warding off depression for both men and women. The researchers also studied the data according to gender and discovered that males who ate the most fish were 20 percent less likely to suffer from depression compared to males who ate the least amount of fish. Also, women who at the most fish were 16 percent less likely to suffer from depression.

The findings still did not lead to any definite conclusion regarding cause and effect, but these provided various theories on the reasons why fish can lead to improved mental health, BBC reported.

The experts also cited that people who eat more fish may actually have a healthier diet, compared to those who did not eat as much, which can explain their better mental health.

Rachel Boyd, information manager at Mind, the mental health charity, stated that it is important not to oversimplify the findings since there are still many different factors involved in the development of depression. However, they certainly agree that the presence of fatty acids in a person’s diet can be beneficial. People can make small changes that can lead to huge results.

The results were published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health on September 10, 2015.