AMMEND: in 72 young men with depression, a Mediterranean diet beat befriending by 14 points on the Beck inventory
A 12-week open-label randomised trial in men aged 18 to 25 with moderate to severe depression: BDI-II mean difference 14.4 (95% CI 11.41 to 17.39) against befriending therapy, and a 12.7-point gain in quality of life. Nobody was blinded.
Reasonable evidence with real limitations. how we score evidence
Caveat on this rating: Open label with a self-rated primary outcome. The abstract gives completers (72), not the number randomised. Control was befriending, not treatment. Men aged 18 to 25 only.
The second Australian trial of diet for depression, in a group the first one barely included: young men.
Significant findings
"A 12-wk, parallel-group, open-label, randomized controlled trial was conducted to assess the effect of an MD intervention in the treatment of moderate to severe depression in young males (18-25 y). Befriending therapy was chosen for the control group." The primary outcome was the Beck Depression Inventory II; the secondary was quality of life.
"A total of 72 participants completed the study." Adherence to the diet rose as intended: the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Score was "significantly higher in the MD group compared with the befriending group (mean difference: 7.8; 95% CI: 7.23, 8.37; P < 0.001)."
On depression: "The mean change in BDI-II score was significantly higher in the MD group compared with the befriending group at week 12 (mean difference: 14.4; 95% CI: 11.41, 17.39; P < 0.001)." On quality of life: "mean difference: 12.7; 95% CI: 7.92, 17.48; P < 0.001."
The authors' conclusion: "compared with befriending, an MD intervention leads to significant increases in MEDAS, decreases in BDI-II score, and increases in QoL scores."
The other direction
Open label: everyone knew who was on the diet, and the primary outcome is a self-rated questionnaire. The abstract reports 72 who completed, not how many were randomised, so the dropout rate is not on the record here. Befriending is a fair control for attention but it is not treatment; the trial shows diet beat conversation, not that diet beat therapy or medication. A 14-point difference on the BDI-II is large, and large effects in small unblinded trials are the effects that shrink when the trial is repeated at scale.
What this does not show
It does not include women, older men, or anyone outside 18 to 25. It does not compare diet with any treatment. It does not tell anyone to change what they eat and this row does not either.
Worth asking
Which part did the work: the food, the weekly attention from someone teaching it, or knowing you were in the group that got the real thing?
Source
The effect of a Mediterranean diet on the symptoms of depression in young males (the "AMMEND: A Mediterranean Diet in MEN with Depression" study): a randomized controlled trial — Bayes J, Schloss J, Sibbritt D (2022)
Reputable peer-reviewed journal
Read the source: https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqac106
DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/nqac106
How this was scored
- Study design
- Randomised controlled trial
- Funding
- Funding not disclosed
- Published in
- Reputable peer-reviewed journal
- Sample size
- 72
- Preregistered
- Yes
- Conflicts disclosed
- not recorded
- Independent of proponent
- not recorded
- Retracted
- No
Read the full scoring rubric, including what it can't tell you.
Published September 29, 2026.
Questions
How strong is the evidence behind this?
veisund rates this source "moderate evidence". Reasonable evidence with real limitations. It scores 63 out of 100 on our published rubric. One caveat travels with that badge: Open label with a self-rated primary outcome. The abstract gives completers (72), not the number randomised. Control was befriending, not treatment. Men aged 18 to 25 only. The score is calculated from recorded facts about the source — study design, funding, publication venue, sample size, preregistration — not typed in by an editor.
What is the source for this?
The effect of a Mediterranean diet on the symptoms of depression in young males (the "AMMEND: A Mediterranean Diet in MEN with Depression" study): a randomized controlled trial — Bayes J, Schloss J, Sibbritt D (2022). Published in: Reputable peer-reviewed journal. DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/nqac106. The full source is linked on this page so you can read it yourself.
Who paid for this research, and does that matter?
Study design: Randomised controlled trial. Funding: Funding not disclosed. Independence from the proponent is not recorded. Industry sponsorship is one of the most reliably measured biases in medicine, which is why funding carries real weight in the score rather than sitting in a footnote.
Is this medical advice?
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.