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The depressogenic potential of added dietary sugars
Reis, Daniel J Ilardi, Stephen S. Namekata, Michael S. Wing, Erik K. Fowler, Carina H.
Reis, Daniel J
Ilardi, Stephen S.
Namekata, Michael S.
Wing, Erik K.
Fowler, Carina H.
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Abstract
Added sugars are ubiquitous in contemporary Western diets. Although excessive sugar consumption is now
robustly associated with an array of adverse health consequences, comparatively little research has thus far
addressed its impact on the risk of mental illness. But ample evidence suggests that high-dose sugar intake can
perturb numerous metabolic, inflammatory, and neurobiological processes. Many such effects are of particular
relevance to the onset and maintenance of depressive illness, among them: systemic inflammation, gut microbiota
disruption, perturbed dopaminergic reward signaling, insulin resistance, oxidative stress, and the generation
of toxic advanced glycation end-products (AGEs). Accordingly, we hypothesize that added dietary sugars
carry the potential to increase vulnerability to major depressive disorder, particularly at high levels of consumption.
The present paper: (a) summarizes the existing experimental and epidemiological research regarding
sugar consumption and depression vulnerability; (b) examines the impact of sugar ingestion on known depressogenic
physiological processes; and (c) outlines the clinical and theoretical implications of the apparent
sugar-depression link. We conclude that the extant literature supports the hypothesized depressogenic impact of
added dietary sugars, and propose that an improved understanding of the effects of sugar on body and mind may
aid in the development of novel therapeutic and preventative measures for depression.
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Date
2019-10
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Elsevier
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Keywords
Depression, sugar, pathophysiology, inflammation
Citation
Daniel J. Reis, Stephen S. Ilardi, Michael S. Namekata, Erik K. Wing, Carina H. Fowler,
The depressogenic potential of added dietary sugars,
Medical Hypotheses,
Volume 134,
2020,
109421,
ISSN 0306-9877,