Research suggests that various biological and psychosocial mechanisms are involved in the heterogeneous and complex relationship between dietary patterns and depressive symptoms. The occurrence of depressive symptoms is thought to be related to socioeconomic status (SES), with those with lower SES being more likely to experience persistent depression. The aim of the undertaken study was to investigate whether socioeconomic and health variables are associated with dietary assessment in a population with high rates of social deprivation and whether a relationship exists between dietary assessment and depressive symptoms (DS). The respondents' nutrition was evaluated through a qualitative method, using the Perinumeric Periodic Table questionnaire by Starzyńska. At the same time, the prevalence of DS was assessed employing the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). In the DS screening (PHQ-9 ≥ 10), in the entire study population, the risk of DS was 16.1% (n = 605). In our entire study population, up to 61.2% (n = 2297) of the respondents exhibited poor dietary patterns. In the multivariate model, women with almost adequate or poor dietary assessment were 1.62 and 2.18 times more likely to score at least 10 on the PHQ-9 questionnaire, as compared to women whose dietary assessment was good or adequate. In conclusion, it was determined that sociodemographic variables affect nutritional habits. Women who lived in rural areas limited to a vocational education had significantly poorer diets. Moreover, men, younger men, smokers, and those without chronic diseases were characterized by a poorer dietary assessment. Additionally, women who had a better dietary assessment were significantly more likely to have lower scores on the questionnaire assessing the occurrence of DS (PHQ-9 10).
Keywords: depressive symptoms; diet; mental health; prevention; public health.