Exploring the Interaction between Major Dietary Patterns and Overweight/Obesity Status in Relation to the Chance of Anxiety among Iranian Population: A YaHS-TAMYZ study

Background: Anxiety is one of the most prevalent mental illnesses globally. While there are long-established, separate, and bidirectional connections between nutrition, excess body weight, and anxiety, it is still unclear how these variables interact and affect anxiety state. The aim of the current investigation was to determine whether there was a significant interaction between major dietary patterns (DPs) and overweight/obesity status in relation to the chance of anxiety among Iranian individuals in Yazd, Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on baseline data of a large Iranian cohort study (Yazd Health Study: YaHS-TAMYZ). Dietary intakes were collected via a validated food frequency questionnaire. Major DPs were identified by principal component analysis (PCA). Then, body weight was assessed via an accurate body analyzer. Anxiety score was also evaluated using the validated scale-21 (DASS-21) questionnaire. Finally, the interaction between DPs and overweight/obesity in relation to the odds of anxiety was assessed using a multivariable adjusted binary logistic regression. Results: In total, 5781 participants were included in the present investigation. Individuals with the highest adherence to high animal protein DP and with overweight/obesity state had significantly lower odds of anxiety compared to those with the lowest imitation and normal body weight (P for interaction: 0.03). Conclusion: Findings of the current study revealed that the “high animal protein” DP may be inversely linked to the lower chance of anxiety in participants with overweight/obesity. Yet, further long-term prospective investigations are required to confirm the results.