Diet as a hot topic in psychiatry : a population-scale study of nutritional intake and inflammatory potential in severe mental illness

People with severe mental illnesses (SMIs) – including schizophrenia, major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder – have excessive caloric intake, a low-quality diet, and poor nutritional status compared to the general population. Poor diet increases the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular mortality in this population. Furthermore, excessive consumption of high-fat and high-sugar foods can increase systemic inflammation. Indeed, all classes of SMI show heightened levels of peripheral inflammatory markers, which is linked to worse prognosis in these conditions. However, there currently is an absence of large-scale studies comparing the nutritional intake and inflammatory profile of the diets of individuals with SMIs.