Which Came First Obesity or Depression?
According to a recent study, people with current depression or a previous diagnosis of depression were 60 percent more likely to be obese. Those with an anxiety disorder were 30 percent more likely to be obese.
Depression and obesity likely fuel one another, said lead author Gregory Simon, M.D. “When people gain weight, they’re more likely to become depressed, and when they get depressed, they have more trouble losing weight,” said Simon, a psychiatrist and researcher at Group Health Cooperative in Seattle.
Treatments such as exercise and stress reduction can help to manage both obesity and depression at the same time. Dieting, which can worsen mood, and antidepressants, which can cause weight gain, should be minimized.
"The treatment of depression and obesity should be integrated," the authors conclude. "This way, healthcare providers are working together to treat both conditions, rather than each in isolation."
Tags: depression, obesity
5 Comments
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Comment by Diana Young, RD, LD/N, CDE on November 29, 2008 at 7:10am -
JJ,
Wow, your story is so awesome. You beat depression and obesity. What advice would you give to our readers?
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Comment by Lisa Newton on November 29, 2008 at 4:01pm -
It's so important to fully understand the relationship between obesity and depression, and to treat them together. My only wonder is are doctors really taking this advice or are they following the opposite advice and prescribing pills?
I know from research that doctors either don't know enough about food, nutrition, and exercise to counsel their patients or the time.
Your thoughts?
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Comment by Diana Young, RD, LD/N, CDE on November 30, 2008 at 6:55am
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IMO, pills are over prescribed - it's an easy
solution. What is needed is a team approach - Dietitian and Mental Health Counselor.
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Comment by JJ on December 3, 2008 at 12:45am -
I don't know if I can give a good advice.
But based on my own experience, I asked myself - How long do I want to feel sorry for myself? How long do I want to be fat and then whine on how people are prejudging and teasing me all the time? And so on.
So one day it just hit me that I need to start changing myself for a better future.
Three years of hard work physically and mostly mentally. But it pays out beautifully. Those three years have trained me to become a more secure and confident person. From there, I found out that behind that super fat, double chin lad is actually a very good looking and sexy guy. Oh humility. lol.
I didn't just lose fats. I also lost my entire depression that was brought mostly by obesity.
This journey continues to open multiple of new doors for me. Countless of doors.
Nothing is impossible now.
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© 2009 Created by Lisa Newton
I no longer have depression. Losing weight has opened new doors for me. Doors that I did not see before. It has turned me completely to become a new person.