Tis the Season for Mental Health
Lifestyle Health Wrap #12
As we approach and move into the winter season, and as daylight and warmth become more scarce, mental health has been on the mind. Only after putting together this week’s wrap did I realize it’s entirely mental health-focused.1 So, unlike most of the other wraps, the title of this wrap isn’t related to one of the research articles or topics I cover but all of them.
As always, I hope you learn something from this wrap and please comment on the post or reach out if you have any questions, comments, or feedback. Thanks!
Sections
DIET & EXERCISE | SLEEP | STRESS | CONNECTION | OTHER
Diet & Exercise
Association Between Joint Physical Activity and Dietary Quality and Lower Risk of Depression Symptoms in US Adults: Cross-sectional NHANES Study | May 10, 2023
https://doi.org/10.2196/45776
N = 19,295 (adults 20-80 y.o. in the noninstitutionalized US population)
Cross-sectional
Every two years, the CDC collects and publishes a new National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) dataset.2 These surveys are designed to collect data from nationally representative samples of the US population. This study used the data from the NHANES samples from 2007 to 2018 to examine how dietary quality and physical activity correlated with symptoms of depression.
While controlling for covariates3 this study found that participants who met or exceeded the American Physical Activity guideline (150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous physical activity per week4) had an 18% lower odds of depression than those who did not. In other words, more physically active people were less likely to be depressed.
But, since this is a cross-sectional study, we cant draw causational conclusions. So you might also say that subjects who did not qualify as depressed were more likely to meet the recommended level of physical activity.
Similarly, again controlling for covariates, subjects who met the recommended dietary guidelines5 had a 17 percent lower odds of depression. Again, this is correlational, not causational.
Most significant, however, was the reduced prevalence of depression among those who both met the recommended physical activity and dietary guidelines. This group had a 33% lower odds of depression.
Finally, it’s worth pointing out that “participants who consumed a healthy diet but were physically inactive did not have a significantly lower risk of depression symptoms… as well as those who consumed an unhealthy diet and were physically active.” So, if we assume that these correlations reflect some degree of causation, it's best to both eat well and get in our physical activity (and sleep too!) to reduce our odds of depression most effectively.
(This study is extremely similar to the study I covered in wrap #8, only that one focused on sleep instead of physical activity, but was otherwise also focused on associations between diet and depression. Check it out.)
Sleep
Suicide and sleep: Is it a bad thing to be awake when reason sleeps? | October 2016
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2015.10.003
Theoretical Review
This review paper focuses on how and why suicide risk increases when people stay up late during the night.
In the introduction section, they highlight a meta-analysis and systemic review which both found that “insomnia, poor sleep quality, and nightmares, were significantly and independently predictive of increased risk for suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and death by suicide.”
This paper continues where those studies left off and focuses on answering the question: “What about being awake at night confers risk?” They review the research on this topic, especially the neuroscience and chronobiology (the biology of circadian rhythms) that help explain why staying awake at night might make people at risk of suicide more likely to commit suicide.
The hypothesis proffered here is that being awake when one is not biologically prepared to be so results in “hypofrontality” and diminished executive function, and that this represents a common pathway to suicidal ideation and behavior.
Hypofrontality is low activity in the frontal lobes of the brain, which are the main hubs of higher-order thinking and executive functions (i.e., self-control and critical thinking). So when someone is sleep deprived or up late at night, hypofrontality occurs and this paper connects this to the observed increase of risk of suicide that occurs with sleep disturbances.
What does this have to do with lifestyle health? Well for one, as you know, getting enough sleep is important to mental health. But more importantly, knowing that staying up late can increase the risk of suicide is important to be aware of when thinking about creating good habits that protect our mental health and well-being.
This is especially worth knowing about for those of us who know people who may be having thoughts of suicide. If you have a loved one who is depressed/suicidal, talk to them about their sleep habits and see if you can help them make a safety plan. At the very least, make sure they’re aware of Crisis Text Line, which is a great resource for anyone who feels like they have nobody to turn to in a time of crisis.
Stress
Loving-Kindness and Compassion Meditation: Potential for Psychological Interventions | November 2011
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2011.07.003
Review
This paper has an easy-to-understand abstract, so I’m just going to share that:
Mindfulness-based meditation interventions have become increasingly popular in contemporary psychology. Other closely related meditation practices include loving-kindness meditation (LKM) and compassion meditation (CM), exercises oriented toward enhancing unconditional, positive emotional states of kindness and compassion. This article provides a review of the background, the techniques, and the empirical contemporary literature of LKM and CM. The literature suggests that LKM and CM are associated with an increase in positive affect and a decrease in negative affect. Preliminary findings from neuroendocrine studies indicate that CM may reduce stress-induced subjective distress and immune response. Neuroimaging studies suggest that LKM and CM may enhance activation of brain areas that are involved in emotional processing and empathy. Finally, preliminary intervention studies support application of these strategies in clinical populations. It is concluded that, when combined with empirically supported treatments, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, LKM and CM may provide potentially useful strategies for targeting a variety of different psychological problems that involve interpersonal processes, such as social anxiety, marital conflict, anger, and coping with the strains of long-term caregiving.
With the stress of the holiday season upon us, practicing mindfulness can be a huge help. In particular, I recommend learning about and trying out loving-kindness and compassion meditation techniques.
There are so many online resources on these topics, just searching YouTube can be a good place to start. But if you want a direct recommendation, I’m a fan of Sam Harris, and here’s a longer (53 min) guided loving-kindness meditation he made. Also, Dan Harris (unrelated, but they are friends) has some good stuff out there too, here’s a 12-minute guided meditation from him.
Connection
A Guide On Building Lasting Connections: How to Make and Keep Friends | November 20, 2024
https://www.clearerthinking.org/post/a-guide-on-building-lasting-connections-how-to-make-and-keep-friends
This isn’t an academic article or study, nonetheless, it does site research and is very well-reasoned. After giving an overview of the modern problem of loneliness, the author gives extensive, useful tips for avoiding loneliness and making and keeping friends. Even if you’re not feeling lonely, this article is a valuable read for anyone. In particular, the advice on how to be a good friend is relevant to anyone.
Other
It’s No-Shave November aka Movember, and I’m participating!
I try to be an advocate for mental health, so as much as I don’t like growing facial hair, it’s hard for me not to partake in the Movember campaign. Movember.org advocates and raises money for issues of men’s health, and “mental health and suicide prevention” is one of their areas of focus.
I have the goal of running/cycling 60 miles and raising $200 by the end of the month. Go check out my “Mo Space” to see my mustache, see how I’m progressing in my activity challenge, and donate to the cause!
Finally, I’ve recently become a fan of Doctor Mike’s podcast and YouTube channel. His podcast has some great guests, I recommend checking it out. This video of his is an interesting and informative analysis of an ultra-processed food package– Lunchly –posing as a healthy alternative.
I’ll be back next weekend with a Thanksgiving-themed post!
Disclaimer: This newsletter provides health information and research for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional for guidance on your health-related decisions. We are not medical professionals.
If I had planned this out ahead of time, I would have included some research about seasonal affective disorder, but I have a long winter ahead of me, so I’ll cover that soon enough.
Longer description from ChatGPT: “The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) is a long-standing research program conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), specifically its National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). NHANES collects a wide range of health and nutritional data from a representative sample of the U.S. population to assess the health and wellness of Americans over time.”
These are variables like age, socioeconomic status, smoking status, and other health information that may influence the outcome of interest.
“PA at moderate intensity should be done for 150 minutes [equivalent to 600 MET min/wk] a week or, at vigorous intensity, should be performed 75 min/wk for adults.” From the Assessment for PA subsection of the methods section in the research article.