"Chocolate lovers 'are more depressive', say experts"

[Perry]

Huh.

 

People who regularly eat chocolate are more depressive, experts have found.

Research in Archives of Internal Medicine shows those who eat at least a bar every week are more glum than those who only eat chocolate now and again.

Many believe chocolate has the power to lift mood, and the US team say this may be true, although scientific proof for this is lacking.

But they say they cannot rule out that chocolate may be a cause rather than the cure for being depressed.

In the study, which included nearly 1,000 adults, the more chocolate the men and women consumed the lower their mood.

Those who ate the most - more than six regular 28g size bars a month - scored the highest on depression, using a recognised scale.

None of the men and women were on antidepressants or had been diagnosed as clinically depressed by a doctor.

'Mood food'

Dr Natalie Rose and her colleagues from the University of California, San Diego, say there are many possible explanations for their findings, and that these need to be explored.

It may simply be that people who are depressed crave chocolate as a "self-treatment" to lift mood, or depression may drive the craving without any beneficial effect.

"Alternatively, analogous with alcohol, there could be short-term benefits of chocolate to mood with longer-term untoward effects," they told the journal.

Chocolate could even be a direct cause of depression, the researchers added.

Bridget O'Connell, of the mental health charity Mind, said: "The way we feel and what we eat can be closely related, and many people will be familiar with craving particular foods or comfort eating when they are stressed, under pressure or depressed.

"However, as this study shows, more research is needed to determine exactly what the relationship between chocolate and our mood is."

 

A bar a week is a lot? :ohmy:

[kareng]

I didn't want to know that! I LOVE chocolate. Not that I have to eat it ALL the time but I like knowing it's there if I am "in the mood" for some!:001_smile:

[Saille]

Dude, we are *treating* our depression. *Treating*. With treats. Duh.

[forty-two]

Wow - I have chocolate daily :001_huh:.

 

But - if it's 60% cacao, at least - it genuinely does lift my mood. But milk chocolate does kind of have a temporary lift followed by a crash (too much sugar).

 

I certainly do eat more chocolate when I'm already feeling depressed, though. I do the same with sugar, too, and I can tell the difference - sugar requires me to keep eating it to stave off the crash, while very dark chocolate doesn't. The sugar-to-fat ratio also makes a difference.

[Jen in PA]

This is a total downer. I am going to self-medicate with a small bar of the 85% cacao stuff.

[BigMamaBird]

Well, I'm off to self-medicate now.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

..

[Mejane]

Know what depresses me? When millions of dollars are spent on worthless studies such as this one. :glare:

 

Now where's the chocolate... ?

[TravelingChris]

I don't know about depression but I do treat my arthritis pain with dark chocolate. Usually 75% kind. One summer I was in bad pain, not breathing well because of fires, and having to drive my son to a summer program about 25 miles each way (so 50 miles rt 2 times a day). I was not a happy camper but then I started eating the chocolate I would buy at a nearby natural store. It really did help.

[melissel]

Dr Natalie Rose and her colleagues from the University of California, San Diego, say there are many possible explanations for their findings, and that these need to be explored.

 

Uh...YA THINK? :confused: That has to be one of the silliest study conclusions I have ever heard, and I don't even eat that much chocolate!

[Sputterduck]

Dude, we are *treating* our depression. *Treating*. With treats. Duh.

 

This.

 

They're are going the wrong way with their conclusions. Obviously depressed people are self treating with chocolate! Could they be more dense??

[Perry]

.

Edited April 27, 2010 by Perry

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

WOW I am in trouble then! LOL I get more depressed when you take my chocolate away from me :D

[hornblower]

The CBC reports it differently:

 

headline:

 

Chocolate cravings rise in depression: study

 

People suffering from depression tend to eat more chocolate than those without the mood disorder, a new study suggests

 

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/04/27/chocolate-depression.html#ixzz0mKFMnq7U

[Mejane]

The CBC reports it differently:

 

headline:

 

Chocolate cravings rise in depression: study

 

 

 

Now, there's a conclusion for which I can personally vouch. ;)

 

But, again, they needed a study for this?

[Perry]

The CBC reports it differently:

 

headline:

 

Chocolate cravings rise in depression: study

 

 

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/04/27/chocolate-depression.html#ixzz0mKFMnq7U

 

It was a cross sectional study, so they can't establish causality. They showed an association, but with this study design, that's all they can do.

 

The conventional wisdom is that chocolate improves mood. I don't know how much research there is to support that though. I did a quick pubmed search and it looks like the evidence isn't all that great. Here's the study abstract.

Mood FoodChocolate and Depressive Symptoms in a Cross-sectional Analysis

Natalie Rose, MD; Sabrina Koperski, BS; Beatrice A. Golomb, MD, PhD

 

Arch Intern Med. 2010;170(8):699-703.

Background Much lore but few studies describe a relation of chocolate to mood. We examined the cross-sectional relationship of chocolate consumption with depressed mood in adult men and women.

Methods A sample of 1018 adults (694 men and 324 women) from San Diego, California, without diabetes or known coronary artery disease was studied in a cross-sectional analysis. The 931 subjects who were not using antidepressant medications and provided chocolate consumption information were the focus of the analysis. Mood was assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). Cut points signaling a positive depression screen result (CES-D score, 16) and probable major depression (CES-D score, 22) were used. Chocolate servings per week were provided by 1009 subjects. Chocolate consumption frequency and rate data from the Fred Hutchinson Food Frequency Questionnaire were also available for 839 subjects. Chocolate consumption was compared for those with lower vs higher CES-D scores. In addition, a test of trend was performed.

Results Those screening positive for possible depression (CES-D score 16) had higher chocolate consumption (8.4 servings per month) than those not screening positive (5.4 servings per month) (P = .004); those with still higher CES-D scores (22) had still higher chocolate consumption (11.8 servings per month) (P value for trend, <.01). These associations extended to both men and women. These findings did not appear to be explained by a general increase in fat, carbohydrate, or energy intake.

Conclusion Higher CES-D depression scores were associated with greater chocolate consumption. Whether there is a causal connection, and if so in which direction, is a matter for future prospective study.

 

Author Affiliations: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of California, Davis, and School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego (Dr Rose); and Departments of Medicine (Ms Koperski and Dr Golomb) and Family and Preventive Medicine (Dr Golomb), University of California, San Diego.

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

Well, often you crave chocolate if you are deficient in magnesium. http://autoimmunedisease.suite101.com/article.cfm/magnesium_deficiency_in_autoimmune_disease One of the symptoms of magnesium deficiency is depression.

[elegantlion]

Dude, we are *treating* our depression. *Treating*. With treats. Duh.

 

I believe this study requires more research. I'll volunteer to see if more chocolate makes you less depressed. :D

[AuntieM]

So how many chocolate chips does it take to equal 1 bar?

 

Self-medicating here, in small, regular doses...

[SquirrellyMama]

Dr Natalie Rose and her colleagues from the University of California, San Diego, say there are many possible explanations for their findings, and that these need to be explored.

 

They obviously want to eat more chocolate. Man, I wish I could do this scam. Eat lots of chocolate, get paid and call it science.

 

Kelly

[Diana B]

It's been brought up ~ but there are so many other factors! Hmm.. maybe eating too much chocolate made them fat and therefore they are depressed? What kind of chocolate are they eating? Too much sugar will make them crash.

 

I was craving chocolate last night (TOM always makes me crave!) and I never did find any. I guess I need to go bake now!

[mcconnellboys]

What do *they* know? It *does* lift mood. All those depressives would be suicides if they didn't have their chocolate. Eat away!

[Laurie4b]

I believe this study requires more research. I'll volunteer to see if more chocolate makes you less depressed. :D

 

LOL!

 

I apparently should be in a catatonic stupor, given my level of chocolate consumption.

[katemary63]

There goes my faith in science ......

:tongue_smilie:

 

:lol::lol: My son calls me, "The happiest person I've ever met." And I have been a chocohaulic for 40 years, eating some form of chocolate daily. (often several times a day - it wasn't pretty!) As of Jan 1, this year, I have eliminated all forms of dessert from my diet and therefore have not had a "fix" in almost 4 months. I'm still the "happiest person" he's ever met. Chocoloate or no chocolate, I'm a naturally optomistic, effervescent, joy filled person with a big ol' smile on my face.