How Does Citrus Lower the Risk of Depression?

Depression is a concerning condition in the present world. About 280 million people are suffering from mental health problems, including depression. Depression not only affects a person’s mental wellbeing but also the quality of life.

Researchers suggest that minor lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of depression. These changes include eating anti-inflammatory foods, balanced diet, good good-quality sleep, and exercising.

Recent research by Raaj Mehta, a medical instructor at Harvard Medical School, has uncovered a connection between the gut and the brain. This study found that consuming citrus fruits may lower the risk of depression by 20%.

“The effect seems to be specific to citrus. When we look at people’s total fruit or vegetable consumption, or other individual fruits such as apples or bananas, we don’t see any relationship between intake and risk of depression.” — R. Mehta.

Data collection was done from 32 thousand female nurses registered within Nurses’ Health Study II (NHS2) from the year 2003 to 2017 along with questionnaire sessions every 4 years. Assessment of citrus intake was followed by asking the consumers about the frequency of intake and type of citrus consumed over the time. Furthermore, stool samples were also collected for DNA sequencing.

Citrus and gut bacteria

The outcomes showed that women who included citrus fruits such as oranges, grapefruits, and blood oranges in their diet regularly turned their stool samples and had increased colonies of 15 different types of good bacteria in them. These results directly reflect how their gut health improved over time. Among these bacteria, ‘’Faecalibacterium prausnitzii’’ was found in abundance. This specific bacteria acts as an anti-inflammatory agent in the gut and improves immunity. F. prausnitzii has been proven to prevent various bowel diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), obesity, and even type II diabetes.

You become what you eat.

As recent studies have found an astonishing connection between gut microbiome health and mental wellbeing, the effect of hormones plays an important role in developing the mood of a person.

R. Mehta further stated that eating a medium-sized orange may reduce the chance of depression by 20%. The same research and data collection was conducted on men from the “Men’s Lifestyle Validation Study”. The outcomes fetched prove that those who had lower amounts of F. prausnitzii in their gut, were more likely to experience depressive symptoms.

The gut-brain connection

An interesting link between gut health, mental health, and mood has been studied. Citrus fruits promote the growth of good bacteria in the gut which improves the production of neurotransmitters in the brain more specifically an increase in the levels of ‘serotonin’ and ‘dopamine’ has been reported. Moreover, serotonin and dopamine are metabolized by the process of the ‘ S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAMe) cycle’, playing a crucial role in the metabolic activities of the body. This cycle improves digestion, and gut microbiome and therefore results in mood stabilization.

Final Thoughts

These findings are very helpful as they include natural sources to eliminate and prevent depression through balanced diets. However, the need of further research related to it is still required and can be expanded to broad data collection, more identification of gut microbiome, and genetics of F. prausnitzii.

In the meantime, adding a medium-sized orange to your daily routine might just be an easy step toward better mental health.