What Is the Link Between Inflammation and Mood?

Mood changes are something millions of people experience — and the COVID pandemic shone a bright light on just how widespread that experience really is. Current statistics (*1) indicate one in five Americans will experience major depressive disorder (MDD) in their lifetime, and many will not find relief from the options most doctors offer. New Jersey has the best statistics at 16.37% and Utah comes in worst with 26.86%.

There are plenty of potential contributors to persistent low mood, but recent research (*2) suggests that inflammation in the body may be a contributing factor to the development and severity of mood changes. In this study, investigators found that inflammation was associated with core symptoms including low mood and lack of pleasure in life, along with listlessness, fatigue, altered sleep, and appetite changes.

How Persistent Low Mood Affects Our Health

Persistent low mood is genuinely debilitating on its own — and it's also associated with increased risk for other health issues, including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and chronic respiratory conditions. That's why understanding the underlying factors that may contribute to mood changes matters so much.

Research continues to explore the relationship between inflammation and mood. Understanding the lifestyle factors that may support overall emotional well-being is a helpful and empowering starting point — a healthy mind and body connection worth paying attention to.

The Crisis of Chronic Inflammation

When the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue, it leads to chronic inflammation, which can be detrimental to overall health. Chronic inflammation is becoming increasingly common due to various factors, such as a pro-inflammatory diet high in sugar, refined carbohydrates, and processed foods. Lifestyle factors such as exposure to environmental toxins, sleep deprivation, chronic stress, low vitamin D, obesity, prediabetes, lack of movement, and smoking also contribute to inflammatory conditions.

Chronic inflammation has its own set of symptoms which might not seem connected unless you know that they can fit together: abdominal pain, chest pain, fatigue, joint pain, skin rashes, fever, high blood pressure, memory changes, changes in blood sugar levels, insulin resistance.

The Science of Inflammation

Inflammation is the first domino in the sequence — once the body starts to experience chronic inflammation, it's a cascade of biochemical dominos after that. In a healthy brain there is a strong membrane — the blood-brain barrier — which keeps toxins out. However, long-term elevated inflammation can lead to a breakdown in the barrier between the body and the brain, causing inflammation inside the brain (neuroinflammation). Inflammation in the brain alters essential brain circuits, which can affect the neurons and cells responsible for reward behavior and identity. Additionally, inflammation is associated with the activation of parts of the brain that process social rejection, fear, and perceived threats.

What Is a Cytokine (and Why Does It Matter)?

Cytokines are a group of chemical messengers that send out the alarm to the immune system to turn up and deal with something that is dangerous to the body.

The connection between inflammation and mood goes beyond neural activity and motivation. A review study found that pro-inflammatory cytokines directly affect important mood neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin and can also cause dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, central nervous system function, and structural and functional brain changes.

Inflammation is a complex series of actions and reactions in your body. So it makes sense that there isn't one single test that measures it. Different inflammatory biomarkers give slightly different information about what is going on.

Numerous studies (*3) have shown that people experiencing persistent low mood often have higher levels of inflammatory markers in their blood, including C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). A study examining twins who share 100 percent of the same genes found that the twin with a higher CRP concentration was more likely to develop mood-related symptoms five years later. Further research indicates that people with autoimmune diseases have especially high rates of mood disturbance. Autoimmunity is on the rise — and so there will be a corresponding increase in people experiencing these mood effects.

Top Tips On Supporting Your Body Against Inflammation

1. Minerals and Vitamins — Certain vitamins (vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D) and supplements (zinc) may be associated with reduced inflammation and enhanced repair, as can cold fish oil. Or you could cook with spices with anti-inflammatory properties, such as turmeric, ginger, or garlic.

2. Choose foods that are anti-inflammatory: Oily fish, such as mackerel, salmon, or sardines; leafy greens like spinach and kale; olive oil.

3. Avoid foods that contain trans fats and dangerous additives: fried foods, especially fast food; cured meats with nitrates, such as hot dogs and, so sorry, bacon; refined carbohydrates such as sugar and baked products with white flour.

4. Move your body and get your heart rate up for 30 minutes, 5 times a week. Sweating helps your body flush out what it doesn't need and keeps your muscles strong so they can pump blood around — stopping everything from getting sluggish and stagnant.

5. Limit alcohol — it is a toxicant that your body must work hard to process, and that work gets harder as we get older.

6. Drink plenty of water (or herbal tea) to help flush toxins from your body.

7. Avoid skin care and cleaning products that contain harmful toxicants like parabens.

8. Don't live near a nuclear reactor or a superfund site.

9. Find a way to stop smoking — think about using counseling, nicotine patches, or meditation to help you transition away from cigarettes.

10. Balance your hormones to give your body the best chance of functioning well.

11. Cut out the things that cause stress from your life — stress really can be deadly!

Of course — this list is easier written than done. Small steps still count. And now that you understand more about the relationship between inflammation and how you feel day to day, you've got a smarter starting point for making the changes you know you want to make.

This article is for informational and educational purposes only. If you or someone you know is experiencing persistent low mood or emotional distress, please consult a qualified healthcare provider.

REFERENCES:

1. https://www.mhanational.org/issues/2022/mental-health-america-adult-data#two

2. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-021-01188-w

3. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-27571-3