An estimated 20 percent of teens experience depression at some point, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Symptoms of depression include blue feelings, lack of energy and inability to enjoy activities that were once pleasurable. Depression and diet may be related, because people who do not eat healthy foods tend to get fewer essential nutrients. Lack of B vitamins, specifically, may play a role in teen depression, because they produce chemicals in the brain that affect mood.
Diet
Nutrition can influence mood and energy. Although there's only anecdotal evidence indicating that kids who eat a diet high in junk food are more likely to experience depression and low energy levels, a 2007 study at Massachusetts General Hospital found that a folate deficiency increases the risk of depression and a poorer treatment outcome. Insufficient folate, which is a type of B vitamin, increases the risk of behavioral impairment as well, according to the same research.
Vitamin D
Adolescents with low blood levels of vitamin D may be at an increased risk of developing psychotic symptoms. In a report presented at an annual meeting of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Dr. Barbara Gracious of Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, said that teens being treated at a psychiatric facility who had low levels of vitamin D were four times more likely to experience psychotic symptoms, compared with teen patients with normal vitamin D levels. While psychosis is often associated with severe behavioral problems, symptoms can also include depression and an inability to cope with daily life.
Vitamin B
Vitamin B has been linked to depression in people of all ages. B vitamins play a role in producing brain chemicals that can affect mood, according to Dr. Daniel Hall-Flavin of the Mayo Clinic. Low levels of B-6 and folate may be associated with depression. In 2010, researchers at the School of Public Health in Tokyo examined the effect of B vitamins on depressive symptoms in adolescents. The study included roughly 6,500 boys and girls ages 12 to 15. The researchers found that higher intake of folate and vitamin B-6 were associated with a lower prevalence of depressive symptoms.
Multivitamin
Teens who take a multivitamin every day tend to have a healthier lifestyle, compared with those who do not. In 2006, researchers at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health analyzed health behaviors in 2,500 high school seniors. Kids who took vitamins were less likely to be overweight and smoke. They were also more active, watched less television and ate a healthier diet overall. Factors including overweight, smoking, watching a lot of television and getting little exercise have all been linked in depression in teens.
References
- National Alliance on Mental Illness: What Families Need to Know about Adolescent Depression; 2010
- KidsHealth.org: 5 Ways to Fight Depression; July 2010
- MayoClinic.com: Junk Food Blues: Are Depression and Diet Related?; February 2010
- Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: Low Vitamin D Linked to Psychosis in Teens; Mitchel L. Zoler; 2009
- "The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry"'; The Role of Folate in Depression and Dementia; Mischoulon D; 2007
- American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry: Psychosis;
