Mood follows food: inflammation and depression.

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About 1 in 3 U.S. adults face malnutrition risk or food insecurity, affecting health from childhood to old age 

1 in 5 U.S. adults (21.2%) is protein-deficient, and 10.4% of women of childbearing age are iron-deficient

1 in 5 low-income U.S. children under 5 is iron-deficient, with higher rates among Black and Hispanic children 

1 in 4 U.S. children with Medicaid is at risk of malnutrition due to limited access to nutritious foods

25% of U.S. adults with disabilities face food insecurity, twice the general population rate 

In 2021, 33.8 million U.S. individuals experienced food insecurity

People with essential nutrient deficiencies have almost a 33% higher rate of developing depressive symptoms than their counterparts.

**This content is for educational purposes onlu. Do NOT use material found herein as medical advice nor mental health treatment. Please seek the licensed healthcare professionals for any adjustments in your life as proper care and considerations are necessary for your unique situations and/or contraindications.

In an August 2025 Frontiers in Psychiatry study, researchers found “depression and anxiety are among the most common mental health (MH) disorders worldwide, affecting over 300 million people annually and contributing significantly to global disability and disease burden.” The CDC highlights from their 2024 statistical report that over 63% of self-reported attempts of suicide were from individuals that were diagnosed with major depressive episodes. Though not an exclusive factor, inflammation is significant in the onset, progression, and severity of depression.

Inflammation arises as a critical pathway linking physiological dysregulation to mental health disorders. Biomarkers in our bodies underscore the role of systemic inflammation in the pathophysiology of depression and anxiety.  Longitudinal studies published in the Journal of the Medical American Association (JAMA; and UK and Sweden cohorts respectively) pinpointed three markers: C-Reactive Protein (CRP), haptoglobin (helps damaged blood cells), and leukocytes (assists in immune defense). Their findings illustrate that these biomarkers are precursors "years before [MH] diagnoses." Suffice to say, the body is a wondrously complex vessel and gives signals of distress due to the lack of proper nutrition; at times, before full onset of disruptions in your mood. These red-flag- cells end up talking to your cytokine-cells, which influence gene expression in your you. Essentially, cytokines are regulators in immune communication and inflammatory control that can be detected in blood panels that narrow in on biomarkers that point toward inflammation.

It is important to note; depression and inflammation links are bidirectional. Groundbreaking research such as the 1995/97 CDC ACEs study revealed how chronic stress and early life adversity activates the immune system via stress hormones, leading to prolonged inflammation. As cited above, inflammatory markers crossing the blood-brain barrier, via the vagus nerve, affect neurotransmitter systems (like serotonin and dopamine-- among others) and neuroplasticity (adequate brain cell functioning) contributing to MH diagnoses.

In considering our focus on mood following food, it's important to note the role of food in inflammation. Targeting inflammation may offer some promising relevance to minimizing factors that contribute to depression. To note again, we are examining interrelated and complex systems. Food is not a cure-all. Yet, measured strategies to reduce inflammation can be controlled through food choices. Focusing on whole, minimally processed foods, limiting processed and sugary loaded non-perishable items when possible, and interweaving known anti-inflammatory eating patterns from Blue Zone areas have all been associated with lower inflammation.

This intertwined bidirectional loop has many elements. However, why would we not utilize a basic building block for our bodies as an intervention toward warding off inflammation and/or depression?

Stay tuned...Contemplating which we survey next: the gut-brain axis and anxiety or medication doesn't build your cells, food does :)