Understanding the complex interplay between nutrition and mental health has become a central challenge in public health, psychiatry, and nutritional science. As evidence accumulates across diverse populations and clinical contexts, it is increasingly clear that dietary patterns, nutrient intake, and food environments can influence mental well-being across the lifespan. This special issue brings together a broad range of studies that deepen our understanding of how diet relates to depression, anxiety, cognitive function, and other psychological outcomes, while also highlighting the mechanisms, measurement tools, and methodological considerations essential to advancing the field of nutritional psychiatry.
The collection includes observational and interventional studies conducted in varied populations—pregnant individuals, adolescents, older adults, people living with obesity, individuals with ADHD, and incarcerated populations—reflecting the universality of nutrition as a determinant of mental health. Several papers explore inflammatory dietary patterns, food insecurity, and diet quality as predictors of depressive symptoms and cognitive decline, while others investigate targeted interventions such as the MIND diet, probiotics, curcumin, multinutrients, DHA supplementation, and personalized nutrition approaches. Together, these studies illuminate both population‑level associations and the potential for tailored nutritional strategies to improve mental health outcomes.
Complementing these empirical contributions, this issue also includes important methodological and conceptual work, including guidelines for clinical trials in nutritional psychiatry and the development of innovative tools such as the NutriMental screening instrument and the Dutch MIND diet scoring system. These contributions offer practical resources for researchers and clinicians seeking to design rigorous studies and to integrate nutritional assessment into mental health care.
Collectively, the articles in this special issue highlight the richness and diversity of ongoing research in nutritional psychiatry. They underscore the need for interdisciplinary collaboration and rigorous methodology, while pointing to promising avenues for prevention and treatment. We hope this collection stimulates further inquiry and supports the continued integration of nutrition into mental health research and practice.