Association Between Whole Egg Consumption and Depression Among Older Adults: Birjand Longitudinal Aging Study (Blas) Publisher



Fakhrzadeh H¹ ; Moodi M^{2, 3} ; Sajadi Hezaveh Z⁴ ; Kami A⁵ ; Arzaghi SM¹ ; Esmaeili A^{6, 7} ; Khodabakhshi H² ; Khorashadizadeh M² ; Ejtahed HS^{8, 9} ; Sharifi F⁹
Source: Mediterranean Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism Published:2024

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Egg consumption may be associated with the risk of depression. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to assess this possible relationship in the context of the Birjand longitudinal aging study (BLAS). METHODS: In this cross-sectional study PHQ-9 was used to assess depression in a total of 1364 adults above 60 years of age, participating in the first stage of BLAS between September 2018 to April 2019. Socio-demographic information, anthropometric indices, and number of whole eggs consumed per week were assessed. Depression was assessed across the egg consumption groups: low (≤1 eggs/week), moderate (≥2 to ≤3 eggs/week), and high (≥4 eggs/week), and the association was investigated using logistic regression. RESULTS: Mean egg intake in the studied population was 2.4 eggs/week. In the crude model and after adjustment for age and sex, moderate and high egg consumption were both associated with lower risk of depression in older adults (P≤0.05). Adjustment for more confounding variables revealed that only moderate egg consumption protected against depression, while high egg consumers were still at risk of depression. CONCLUSION: Both moderate and high egg intake had reverse association with depression, and reduced the odds of depression among the elderly to approximately 30-40%. Future longitudinal studies could better confirm this association. © 2024 - IOS Press. All rights reserved.