Is dietary pattern of schizophrenia patients different from healthy subjects?
2007

Dietary Patterns in Schizophrenia Patients Compared to Healthy Controls

Sample size: 60 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Amani Reza

Primary Institution: Jundi-Shapour University of Medical Sciences

Hypothesis

Is dietary pattern of schizophrenia patients different from healthy subjects?

Conclusion

Schizophrenia patients have poor nutritional patterns, particularly females who have higher body fat and lower dietary scores compared to healthy controls.

Supporting Evidence

  • Female patients had higher percent body fat and lower dietary scores than controls.
  • Male patients had lower BMI compared to their controls.
  • Patients consumed more full-fat cream and carbonated drinks than healthy controls.

Takeaway

People with schizophrenia often eat unhealthy foods and have more body fat than those without the illness, especially women.

Methodology

The study compared the dietary patterns of 30 hospitalized schizophrenia patients with 30 matched healthy controls using food frequency questionnaires and anthropometric measurements.

Potential Biases

Potential bias due to self-reported dietary intake and the small, non-diverse sample.

Limitations

The study was a pilot with a small sample size and did not establish cause and effect relationships.

Participant Demographics

30 schizophrenia patients (11 female) aged 16–67 and 30 healthy controls matched for age and sex.

Statistical Information

P-Value

p<0.05

Statistical Significance

p<0.05

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1186/1471-244X-7-15

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