How a high-fat diet could make you anxious

How a high-fat diet could make you anxious

Lisa Marshall 

When we’re stressed out, many of us turn to junk food for solace. But new CU Boulder research suggests this strategy may backfire.

The study found that in animals, a high-fat diet disrupts resident gut bacteria, alters behavior and, through a complex pathway connecting the gut to the brain, influences brain chemicals in ways that fuel anxiety.

“Everyone knows that these are not healthy foods, but we tend to think about them strictly in terms of a little weight gain,” said lead author Christopher Lowry, a professor of integrative physiology at CU Boulder. “If you understand that they also impact your brain in a way that can promote anxiety, that makes the stakes even higher.”

For the study, published in the journal Biological Research in May, Lowry worked with first author Sylvana Rendeiro de Noronha, a doctoral student at the Federal University of Ouro Preto in Brazil.

In a previous study, the team found that rats fed a high-fat diet consisting primarily of saturated fat showed increases in neuroinflammation and anxiety-like behavior.

While evidence is mixed, some human studies have also shown that replacing a high-fat, high-sugar, ultra-processed diet with a healthier one can reduce depression and anxiety.