Bad Food Bad Mood Many people crave for junk food when they are bored or depressed. In the long run, however, junk food is the cause of depression, according to studies.   Eating junk food increases the risk of becoming depressed, a study has found, prompting calls for doctors to routinely give dietary advice to patients as part of their treatment for depression. In contrast, those who follow a traditional Mediterranean diet are much less likely to develop depression because the fish, fruit, nuts and vegetables that diet involves help protect against Britain’s commonest mental health problem, the research suggests. Original article: junk food raises risk of depression   Researchers at the University of Melbourne examined over 1000 randomly selected women, ages 20-93, assessing for symptoms of depression and anxiety and comparing “traditional” diets to “western” diets. They...

Junk Food and Inflammation Diets high in sugar and processed food make your immune system more aggressive, raising the level of inflammatory chemicals in your body. The harmful effects of junk food last a long time, even if you don’t eat it very often. Fascinating new research has shown the body reacts to a junk food meal in a similar manner as to a bacterial infection. This finding comes from a recent study from the University of Bonn. Eating unhealthy food makes your immune defenses more aggressive in the long term. Even if you switch to a healthy diet, the inflammation generated in your body through regular immune challenges becomes heightened. Such long term immune changes may raise the risk of arteriosclerosis and type 2 diabetes, both diseases linked to excess inflammation and a Western diet.  Read more on  junk food creates more inflammation Inflammatory bowel disease linked to...