Ketogenic Diets and Depression and Anxiety

What are the associations between ketogenic diets (KDs) and mental health outcomes in adults, particularly depressive and anxiety symptoms?In this systematic review and meta-analysis of 50 studies, KDs were associated with small to moderate improvements in depressive symptoms in randomized clinical trials and with larger improvements in quasi-experimental studies. No significant associations were found for anxiety in randomized clinical trials.KDs show potential associations with reduced depressive symptoms, but evidence for anxiety is inconclusive; larger, high-quality trials are needed to clarify effectiveness and generalizability.

Corresponding Author: Venkat Bhat, MD, MSc, Interventional Psychiatry Program, St Michael’s Hospital, 193 Yonge St, Room 6-013, Toronto, ON M5B 1M4, Canada (venkat.bhat@utoronto.ca).

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