Abstract
Chronic stress is known to influence dietary choices, and stressed families often report poorer diet quality; however, little is known about how family-based stress is linked with dietary patterns that promote inflammation. This study investigated associations between family-based stress and the inflammatory potential of the diet among preschool-aged children and their parents. Parents (n = 212 mothers, n = 146 fathers) and children (n = 130 girls, n = 123 boys; aged 18 months to 5 years) from 241 families participating in the Guelph Family Health Study were included in the analyses. Parents reported levels of parenting distress, depressive symptoms, household chaos, and family functioning. The inflammatory potential of parents’ and children’s diets was quantified using the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII®), adjusted for total energy intake (i.e., the E-DIITM). E-DII scores were regressed onto family stress using generalized estimating equations to account for shared variance among family clusters. Compared to those in homes with low chaos, parents in chaotic homes had significantly more proinflammatory dietary profiles (β = 0.973; 95% CI: 0.321, 1.624, p = 0.003). Similarly, compared to those in well-functioning families, parents in dysfunctional families had significantly more proinflammatory dietary profiles (β = 0.967; 95% CI: 0.173, 1.761, p = 0.02). No significant associations were found between parents’ E-DII scores and parenting distress or depressive symptoms, nor were any associations found for children’s E-DII scores. Results were not found to differ between males and females. Parents in chaotic or dysfunctional family environments may be at increased risk of chronic disease due to proinflammatory dietary profiles. Children’s dietary inflammatory profiles were not directly associated with family stress; however, indirect connections through family food-related behaviours may exist. Future research should prioritize elucidating these mechanisms.
Highlights
Mental and physical health are often considered to be independent phenomena; growing evidence supports the many degrees to which these domains intersect and interact to determine overall health status
Models were not stratified by sex after no statistically significant moderation by sex was detected for parents or children, as evidenced by nonsignificant sex and stress interaction terms
No significant associations were found between parents’ E-DII scores and parenting distress or depressive symptoms, nor were any associations found for C-DII scores
Summary
Mental and physical health are often considered to be independent phenomena; growing evidence supports the many degrees to which these domains intersect and interact to determine overall health status. Dietary intake may be a key factor influencing the ways in which mental well-being and metabolic health are connected [1]. Accumulating evidence indicates that dietary patterns may play neuroactive roles, meaning that they influence neurological function and, by extension, cognition and mood. Dietary patterns consisting mostly of fruit, vegetables, lean proteins, and low intake of refined grains are associated with lower rates of major depression and anxiety [5,6]. Low-quality and Westernized dietary patterns higher in saturated and trans fats, refined grains, processed sugar, and fast food have been associated with poorer mental health statuses [7,8]
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