A new study shows that junk food may have effects beyond expanding your waistline and upping your sodium levels -- it might also be sabotaging your mental health.

A new study in the journal Public Health Nutrition shows that regularly eating commercial baked goods -- including doughnuts and croissants -- as well as fast food -- pizza, hamburgers and hot dogs -- is linked with an increased depression risk.

Researchers from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the University of Granada found that the people who regularly eat these foods are also more likely to be more sedentary, smoke, eat other not-so-nutritious foods and work 45 or more hours a week.

"Although more studies are necessary, the intake of this type of food should be controlled because of its implications on both health (obesity, cardiovascular diseases) and mental well-being," study researcher Almudena Snchez-Villegas said in a statement.

The study included 8,964 people who didn't have depression (and weren't taking any antidepressant drugs) at the start of the study. Their depression statuses and diets were tracked for an average of six months.

At the end of the study period, 493 people were depressed or were taking antidepressants. The researchers found that the ones who ate the most junk food were 51 percent more likely to develop depression, compared with people who ate the least of these foods.

The Mayo Clinic reported on a previous study also showing a similar link. That study showed that people whose diets are high in fried foods, processed meats, desserts and high-fat dairy had an increased risk of depression symptoms, compared with people who eat lots of fruits, veggies and fish.

And earlier this year, a study in the journal PLoS ONE showed that there may be a link between eating trans fats -- common in a lot of junk foods -- and being irritable and aggressive.

The researchers of that study, from the University of California, San Diego, found that greater trans fats intake seemed to predict whether a person was more aggressive. The finding held true even after taking into account factors like sex, age and ethnicity.

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Junk Food Linked With Increased Depression Risk: Study

It's pretty hard to do your job well if you are at home sick in bed. Doing your best to stay healthy is an important part of producing good quality work and conducting it safely. Making time for wellness won't necessarily add more years to your life, but it could add more life to your years. Taking good care of yourself can help you avoid or at least delay chronic illnesses such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and others. Good health practices can also boost your energy so you get more enjoyment out of life.

Consider these ideas for improving your health:

- Eat regular, nutritious meals. Start your day with a good breakfast such as fruit and whole-grain cereal or toast. A breakfast of a sweet roll and coffee might perk you up at first, but you'll be dragging later in the morning when your blood sugar drops. The traditional hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs and fried hashbrowns can contribute to illnesses such as heart disease and cancer.

- Eat a variety of healthy foods. Throughout the day, eat a variety of fresh vegetables, fruits, bean dishes and whole grains such as rice and pasta. Every day have some citrus fruit or another food high in vitamin C. Get a variety of vitamins in your diet by choosing fruits and vegetables of different types and colors. Be sure to include some dark yellow and dark green vegetables for important nutrients. High-fiber vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage are highly recommended.

- Hydrate. Drink plenty of water, especially in hot weather or dry environments. Other beverages such as coffee and soft drinks are not a substitute.

- Exercise regularly. You need three kinds of exercise. You need some type of activity which will raise your heart rate for at least 20 minutes, several times a week. A brisk walk or bike ride would accomplish this. Swimming, dancing, hiking and aerobics are also activities to improve the capacity of your heart and lungs.

- Strengthen your muscles. You need to keep your muscles strong. Aerobic routines, certain sports and weight training can all contribute to muscle strength.

- Increase your flexibility. You also need exercise which keeps your muscles and ligaments flexible. Yoga routines and stretching exercises before and after a workout are examples.

- Get enough sleep. Studies have shown North Americans are chronically deprived of sleep and the result is decreased productivity as well as increased illness and accidents. You need enough sleep to do your job well. Adequate sleep is needed to keep your body's immune system in good working order.

- Learn to handle stress. Everyone has things which go wrong in their lives; how we accept and handle these problems can sometimes make the difference between illness and health.

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Safety Tip - Stay healthy to do your job safety and well

AMY NORTON Reuters Published Thursday, Mar. 29, 2012 12:54PM EDT Last updated Thursday, Mar. 29, 2012 12:57PM EDT

Some studies have suggested that diet-soda lovers could face higher risks of diabetes and heart disease, but one recent U.S. study of several diet-drink consumers found that overall eating habits may be what matters most in the end.

Researchers, whose findings were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, used data on more than 4,000 people taking part in a long-term study of heart health and followed them for the next 20 years.

Of the study participants between the ages of 18 and 30 when it began in the mid-1980s, 827 subsequently developed metabolic syndrome a cluster of risk factors for heart problems and diabetes including extra weight around the waist, unhealthy cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and elevated blood sugar.

The researchers, lead by Kiyah Duffey of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, found that young adults who drank diet beverages were more likely than those who didnt to develop metabolic syndrome over the next 20 years. But the picture became more complex when Dr. Duffeys team considered the role of diet as well.

Our results suggest that both overall dietary pattern and diet beverage consumption are important, to various degrees, for different metabolic outcomes, they wrote.

The lowest risk of metabolic syndrome was seen in people who drank no diet beverages and stuck to a prudent diet, one rich in foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fish.

Meanwhile, people who also ate a prudent diet but did drink diet beverages had a somewhat higher rate of metabolic syndrome but not by much. Over 20 years, 20 per cent of those men and women developed metabolic syndrome compared to 18 per cent of prudent eaters who didnt regularly have diet drinks.

Participants with the highest rate of metabolic syndrome, at 32 per cent, were those who drank diet soda and downed the typical Western diet including lots of meat, processed foods and sugar.

Healthy eaters who steered clear of diet drinks had the lowest risk of developing metabolic syndrome even after things such as peoples weight and exercise habits at the start of the study were considered more than one-third lower than Western-style eaters who did drink diet beverages.

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Link between diet soda and health not clear-cut, study says

Brookline, MA (PRWEB) March 29, 2012

Diet.com, one of the web's leading resources for diet, fitness and nutrition content and tools, has announced that the site will host an 8-week Spring Fitness Challenge for its members starting this April. The Challenge, which will begin on Monday, April 2 and run through May 27, aims to motivate members to get into shape for summer.

Diet.com's new Spring Fitness Challenge comes on the heels of the website's annual New Year's Weight Loss Challenge, which earlier this year drew over 500 participants from all over the world. The Spring Fitness Challenge will be hosted on Diet.com's Blogs pages, where each week they'll feature a new printable, trainer-designed workout routine. The workouts will increase in difficulty each week, progressing participants through a wide range of exercises to help them push themselves and set new goals.

According to Diet.com, participants will have the option to print their workout each week or to follow along with the workout in real-time using Diet.com's Workout Builder tool, which allows users to combine video clips of different exercises into a custom-designed, full-length workout video.

Challenge participants will check in with their own Diet.com member blogs each week, reporting on how the week's workout is going, noting any weight loss and sharing their own successes and struggles with the Challenge.

At the conclusions of the 8-week Challenge, a winner will be chosen randomly from those who complete the Challenge and submit a short narrative about their own Challenge experience. The final prize package will include a 1-year Diet.com Premium Membership, which grants access to the site's brand new Diet Plan, including meal plans, exercise plans and access to personal consultations with a registered dietitian.

The Spring Fitness Challenge is open to all Diet.com site members. Create a free account here to participate in the Spring Fitness Challenge as well as gain access to Diet.com's fitness and diet tools, including expert blogs, instructional fitness videos, healthy recipes and more.

Read the full rules about the Challenge here.

About Diet.com: Diet.com is a multifaceted health and wellness organization that provides quality information and cutting edge tools and services to consumers and businesses alike. Since its founding, Diet.com has been a valuable online resource for dieters and those seeking information on living a healthy lifestyle. As one of the web's leading resources for diet, nutrition, and fitness content and tools, Diet.com has created a platform where consumers are able to set and track diet and fitness goals, browse over 1,000 healthy recipes, learn new exercises, and interact with others in the thriving Diet.com online community. The diethealth YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/diethealth) has a library of over 500 videos, over 116,000 subscribers, and has received upwards of 94 million views. For any inquiries, please contact Lauren Alford, Director of Business Development, at LaurenA@diet.com or 919-616-7532.

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Diet.com to Host Spring Fitness Challenge, Prepare Dieters for Summer Months Ahead

Studies have hinted that diet-soda lovers could face higher risks of diabetes and heart disease, but new findings suggest that overall diet may be what matters most in the end.

Several studies have found that people who regularly down diet soda are more likely than people who don't to have certain risk factors for those chronic diseases -- like high blood pressure and high blood sugar.

And one recent study became the first to link the beverages to the risk of actual heart attacks and strokes (see Reuters Health story of February 17, 2012).

Still, researchers have not been able to say whether it's the sugar-free drinks, themselves, that deserve the blame.

Many factors separate diet- and regular-beverage drinkers -- and, for that matter, people who stick with water. Overall diet is one.

So this latest study tried to account for people's general diet patterns, said lead researcher Kiyah J. Duffey, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

She and her colleagues used data on more than 4,000 Americans taking part in a long-term study of heart health. They were all between the ages of 18 and 30 when the study began in the mid-1980s.

Over the next 20 years, 827 study participants developed metabolic syndrome -- a cluster of risk factors for heart problems and diabetes including extra weight around the waist, unhealthy cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and elevated blood sugar.

. The researchers found that young adults who drank diet beverages were more likely than those who didn't to develop metabolic syndrome over the next 20 years.

Diet matters too

Read more from the original source:
Complicated link between diet drinks, health, study finds