Is there a relationship between chocolate consumption and symptoms of depression? A cross‐sectional survey of 13,626 US adults

an article by Sarah E. Jackson (University College London, UK), Lee Smith (Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK), Joseph Firth (Western Sydney University, Westmead, Australia;  University of Manchester, UK; University of Melbourne, Australia), Igor Grabovac (Medical University of Vienna, Austria), Pinar Soysal (Bezmialem Vakif University, Istanbul, Turkey), Ai Koyanagi (Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain; ICREA, University of Barcelona, Spain), Liang Hu (Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China), Brendon Stubbs (South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, UK; King's College London, UK), Jacopo Demurtas (Azienda USL Toscana Sue Est, Grosseto, Italy), Nicola Veronese (Neuroscience Institute, Aging Branch, Padova, Italy), Xiangzhu Zhu (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee) and Lin Yang (Alberta Health Services, Calgary, Canada; University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada) published in Depression & Anxiety Volume 36 Issue 10 (October 2019)

Abstract

Objective
To examine associations between chocolate consumption and depressive symptoms in a large, representative sample of US adults.

Methods
The data were from 13,626 adults (≥20 years) participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2007–08 and 2013–14. Daily chocolate consumption was derived from two 24‐hr dietary recalls.
Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ‐9), with scores ≥10 indicating the presence of clinically relevant symptoms.
We used multivariable logistic regression to test associations of chocolate consumption (no chocolate, non‐dark chocolate, dark chocolate) and amount of chocolate consumption (grams/day, in quartiles) with clinically relevant depressive symptoms.
Adults with diabetes were excluded and models controlled for relevant sociodemographic, lifestyle, health‐related, and dietary covariates.ate

Results
Overall, 11.1% of the population reported any chocolate consumption, with 1.4% reporting dark chocolate consumption.
Although non‐dark chocolate consumption was not significantly associated with clinically relevant depressive symptoms, significantly lower odds of clinically relevant depressive symptoms (OR = 0.30, 95%CI 0.21–0.72) were observed among those who reported consuming dark chocolate.
Analyses stratified by the amount of chocolate consumption showed participants reporting chocolate consumption in the highest quartile (104–454 g/day) had 57% lower odds of depressive symptoms than those who reported no chocolate consumption (OR = 0.43, 95%CI 0.19–0.96) after adjusting for dark chocolate consumption.

Conclusions
These results provide some evidence that consumption of chocolate, particularly dark chocolate, may be associated with reduced odds of clinically relevant depressive symptoms.
Further research capturing long‐term chocolate consumption and using a longitudinal design are required to confirm these findings and clarify the direction of causation.

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Upward social comparison and depression in social network settings: The roles of envy and self-efficacy

an article by Yongzhan Li (Pingdingshan University, China) published in Internet Research Volume 29 Issue 1 (2019)

Abstract

Purpose
Previous research has linked upward social comparison on social network sites (SNSs) to depressive symptoms; however, the mechanism underlying this relationship remains unclear. The purpose of this paper is to explore the roles of envy and self-efficacy in the relationship between upward social comparison on SNSs and depressive symptoms.

Design/methodology/approach
Based on the social comparison theory and previous related literature, a moderated mediation model integrating upward social comparison on SNSs, depressive symptoms, envy and self-efficacy was developed and empirically examined based on the data collected from 934 Chinese high school students.

Findings
The structural equation modeling analysis shows that envy partially mediates the relationship between upward social comparison on SNSs and depressive symptoms, whereas self-efficacy moderated both the direct effect of upward social comparison on SNSs on depressive symptoms and the mediating effect of envy in the relationship between upward social comparison on SNSs and depressive symptoms.

Practical implications
The findings offer interesting implications for guiding adolescents to use SNSs properly. This study found that envy and self-efficacy act as a mediator and moderator, respectively, between upward social comparison on SNSs and depressive symptoms, indicating that reducing envy and enhancing self-efficacy should be feasible to alleviate the negative effect of SNSs use.

Social implications
In order to alleviate the negative effect of SNSs use, parents and educators should direct adolescents to view others’ achievements and happiness properly and manage to improve self-efficacy among adolescents with poor self-efficacy through effective training.

Originality/value
Through building and examining a moderated mediation model integrating envy and self-efficacy into the relationship between upward social comparison on SNSs and depressive symptoms, the present study advances our understanding of how and when upward social comparison on SNSs augments the risk of depressive symptoms among adolescents.

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