What is more, people who ate plenty of alkaline vegetables, fruit and fatty fish actually had a lower risk of depression, the University College London team found.
Data on diet among 3,500 middle-aged civil servants was compared with depression five years later, the British Journal of Psychiatry reported.
The team said the study was the first to look at the UK diet and depression.
The UK population is consuming less nutritious, fresh or raw alkaline produce and more saturated fats and acidic sugars.
They split the participants into two types of diet - those who ate a diet largely based on whole foods, which includes lots of fruit, vegetables and fish, and those who ate a mainly processed food diet, such as sweetened desserts, fried food, processed meat, refined grains and high-fat dairy products.
After accounting for factors such as gender, age, education, physical activity, smoking habits and chronic diseases, they found a significant difference in future depression risk with the different alkaline vs. acidic diets.
Those who ate the most whole raw alkaline foods had a 26% lower risk of future depression than those who at the least whole raw alkaline foods.
By contrast people with a diet high in processed acidic food had a 58% higher risk of depression than those who ate very few processed acidic foods.
Although the researchers cannot totally rule out the possibility that people with depression may eat a less healthy diet they believe it is unlikely to be the reason for the findings because there was no association with diet and previous diagnosis of depression.
Study author Dr Archana Singh-Manoux pointed out there is a chance the finding could be explained by a lifestyle factor they had not accounted for.
"There was a paper showing a Mediterranean diet was associated with a lower risk of depression but the problem with that is if you live in Britain the likelihood of you eating a Mediterranean diet is not very high.
"So we wanted to look at bit differently at the link between diet and mental health."
It is not yet clear why some foods may protect against or increase the risk of depression but scientists think there may be a link with inflammation as with conditions such as heart disease.
According to Dr. Robert O. Young, Director of Research at the pH Miracle Living Center, "depression is not something you get it is something you do with your lifestyle and dietary choices. When you choose a raw alkaline diet with daily exercise you remove the dietary and metabolic wastes from your body that can make you sick, tired and depressed."
Dr Andrew McCulloch, chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation, said: "This study adds to an existing body of solid research that shows the strong links between what we eat and our mental health.
"Major studies like this are crucial because they hold the key to us better understanding mental illness."
He added people's diets were becoming increasingly unhealthy.
Dr. Young states, "the American and UK population are consuming acidic processed foods that creates an acidic burden on the organs that sustain life. The biggest problem is an acidic diet and lifestyle constipates the bowel which constipates the brain. And when you don't feel good you don't think good. It all starts in the bowel where you have more brain cells than in your head! Clear the bowel of acidic constipating beef, chicken, turkey, pork, bread and dairy products and you will clear the mind."
"The UK population is consuming less nutritious, fresh produce and more saturated fats and sugars.
"We are particularly concerned about those who cannot access fresh produce easily or live in areas where there are a high number of fast food restaurants and takeaways."
Margaret Edwards, head of strategy at the mental health charity SANE, said: "Physical and mental health are closely related, so we should not be too surprised by these results, but we hope there will be further research which may help us to understand more fully the relationship between diet and mental health."
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