Diabetes Self-Management – September 2019

MEDITERRANEAN DIET

MAY PROTECT AGAINST

DEPRESSION IN OLDER AGE

By Diane Fennell

E

ating a Mediterranean-style diet may protect against

symptoms of depression in older age, according to

new research from Hellenic Open University in Greece.

Researchers looked at data from 154 older adults

in Athens, screening the participants for depression

and sleep disturbances and assessing their adherence

to a Mediterranean diet. Roughly 75% of the sub-

jects screened negative for depression symptoms, 21%

screened positive for moderate depression, and 3%

screened positive for severe depression. Approximately

30% were found to have sleep problems, and about 64%

adhered moderately to a Mediterranean diet.

A link was found between depression diagnosed by

a physician and not sticking to a Mediterranean style

of eating.

Depression was 20% less common in those eating

more vegetables, 36% less common in those eating

less poultry, and 28% less likely in people drinking

less alcohol.

“Although we should be cautious about the study find-

ings, they represent another potential reason to adopt

a Mediterranean diet,” says study author Konstantinos

Argyropoulos, MD, PhD. “Following a healthy lifestyle,

which includes not only a Mediterranean-style diet but

also plenty of physical activity and drinking alcohol only

in moderation, is linked to a reduction in depression.” †

DIABETES

Q UIZ Questions

Back to routine

(school and work)

By Frieda Wiley, PharmD, RPh

With the long, leisurely days of summer coming to a close,

resuming your normal work or school routine may require a

little adjustment. You already know that stress can be very

harmful to your physical well-being, but take this quiz to see

how it can affect your mental health.

1. Which of the following describes the condition in
   which people who have diabetes may feel stressed,
   overwhelmed and/or frustrated?
   OA. Diabetes psychosis
   OB. Diabetes-related
   depression

OC. Diabetes distress

OD. Diabetes-affective dis-

order

2. Having which of the following conditions increases
   the risk for diabetes? (More than one answer may be
   correct.)
   OA. Depression
   OB. Schizophrenia

OC. Tourette syndrome

OD. Delirium

3. In addition to making you prone to exercise less and
   eat poorly, how else might stress affect diabetes?
   OA. Stress may reduce
   stress hormones.
   OB. Stress may increase
   blood sugar.

OC. Stress may cause

peripheral neuropathy

to worsen.

OD. Stress may increase the

frequency of urination.

4. True/false: Adolescents who have diabetes are less
   likely to feel stressed than their peers without diabe-
   tes if they have support from their family.
   OTrue OFalse


5. Fill in the blank: Chronic stress and ____ can
   increase the risk for type 2 diabetes.
   OA. Low health literacy
   OB. Average deductive rea-
   soning skills

OC. Poor sense of direction

OD. Low sense of coher-

ence

NEWS &

NOTES

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10 September/October 2019