Correlation between Food Groups Intake and Depression in Female Students Residing in the Dormitory of Qom University of Medical Sciences

Depression is one of the fourth most common diseases and will be the second most prevalent disease in the world by 2020 predicted by the World Health Organization. Considering the high frequency of depression among students and role of nutrition in psychological disorders according to the literature, the present study aimed to investigate the relationship between the level of depression in female students residing in the dormitory of Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran, and their intake of different food groups.

This cross-sectional study was conducted on 345 students living in the dormitory of Qom University of Medical Sciences randomly selected in 2018. The data were collected using the food frequency questionnaire and Beck Depression Inventory and analyzed by analysis of variance and regression. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

According to the Beck questionnaire, the scores of 9 or less (normal) and 10 or more (levels of depression) were reported for 57.5% and 42.5% of the students, respectively. Although no significant relationship was observed between the scores of the Beck questionnaire with the intake of different food groups and anthropometric indices of the subjects, a positive correlation was observed between the consumption of dairies, oil groups, and sweets with the prevalence of depression.

With regard to the observation of some levels of depression among a number of students living in the dormitory and important role of medical and paramedical students in the promotion of health in the communities, it is suggested to consider the elimination of underlying factors of depression as a health priority.