The cultural background of participants has not been considered in studies of dietary intake and depression, even though food choices are affected by culture. This study aims to examine the dietary patterns of people from diverse backgrounds and the correlation of diet and risk of depression. Relationships between depression and nutrient intake were analyzed with 4747 adult respondents from NHANES data. Multiple regressions were used with depression as dependent variable. Nutrient intake pattern differed among ethnic groups. After considering demographic factors, total fat and protein intake ratio to energy were associated with depressive symptoms among Hispanic respondents. Among White, dietary fiber and sugar were associated with depressive symptoms, and among Black, energy was associated with depressive symptoms. Total sugar and dietary fiber were associated with depressive symptoms among Asian. The relationship between depressive symptoms and nutrient intake varied based on the cultural background of participants.
Keywords: Depression; Diet; Ethnic diversity; Nutrition.