DOES OBESITY INCREASE THE RISK OF MENTAL DISORDERS?

-

 

DOES OBESITY INCREASE THE RISK OF MENTAL DISORDERS?




Being obese significantly increases the chances of also developing mental disorders. This applies to all age groups, with women at higher risk than men for most diseases, as a recent study by the Complexity Science Hub and the Medical University of Vienna shows. The results were published in the specialist journal Translational Psychiatry.

"We analyzed a population-wide national registry of inpatient hospitalizations in Austria from 1997 to 2014 to determine the relative risks of comorbidities in obesity and identify statistically significant sex differences," explains Elma Dervic of the Complexity Science Hub. Consequently, it became evident that an obesity diagnosis significantly enhances the likelihood of a wide range of mental disorders across all age groups -- including depression, nicotine addiction, psychosis, anxiety, eating, and personality disorders. "From a clinical point of view, these results emphasise the need to raise awareness of psychiatric diagnoses in obese patients and, if necessary, to consult specialists at an early stage of diagnosis," says Michael Leutner of the Medical University of Vienna.

FIRST DIAGNOSIS: OBESITY

"In order to find out which illness typically appeared prior and subsequently to the obesity diagnosis, we had to develop a new method," explains Dervic. This allowed the researchers to determine if there were trends and typical patterns in disease occurrence.

In the case of all co-diagnoses, except the psychosis spectrum, obesity was, in all likelihood, the first diagnosis made before the manifestation of a psychiatric diagnosis. "Until now, physicians often considered psychopharmacological medications to cause the association between mental disorders and obesity and diabetes. This may be true for schizophrenia, where we see the opposite time order. Still, our data does not support this for depression or other psychiatric diagnoses," explains Alexander Kautzky from the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy of the Medical University Vienna. However, whether obesity directly affects mental health or whether early stages of psychiatric disorders are inadequately recognized is unknown.

GREATER IMPACT ON WOMEN

Surprisingly, the researchers found significant gender differences for most disorders -- with women showing an increased risk for all diseases except schizophrenia and nicotine addiction.

While 16.66% of obese men also suffer from nicotine abuse disorder, this is only the case in up to 8.58% of obese women. The opposite is true for depression. The rate of diagnosed depressive episodes was almost three times higher in obese women (13.3% obese; 4.8% non-obese). Obese men were twice as likely to be affected (6.61% obese; 3.21% non-obese).

COUNTERACT AT A YOUNG AGE

Obesity is a highly prevalent disease worldwide, affecting over 670 million people. The condition promotes metabolic disorders, and severe cardio-metabolic complications (diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension, and dyslipidemia) have been extensively researched.

Since this study now also shows that obesity often precedes severe mental disorders, the findings underscore its importance as a pleiotropic risk factor for health problems of all kinds. This is primarily true for young age groups, where the risk is most pronounced. For this reason, thorough screening for mental health problems in obese patients is urgently needed to facilitate prevention or ensure that appropriate treatment can be given, so the researchers conclude.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PEOPLE WITH OBESITY BURN LESS CALORIES DURING THE DAY

-
Image
  PEOPLE WITH OBESITY BURN LESS CALORIES DURING THE DAY Building on prior studies with healthy-weight participants, the new research includes different body sizes.         New research indicates that weight influences how and when bodies burn energy. An Oregon Health & Science University study published in the journal  Obesity  found people who have a healthy weight use more energy during the day, when most people are active and eat, while those who are obese spend more energy during the night when most people sleep. The study also found that during the day, those with obesity have higher levels of the hormone insulin -- a sign that the body is working harder to use glucose, an energy-packed sugar. "It was surprising to learn how dramatically the timing of when our bodies burn energy differed in those with obesity," said the study's first author, Andrew McHill, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the OHSU School of Nursing and the Oregon Institute of Occupational Health
Read more

WHAT CAUSES ITCHING, AND WHAT STOPS IT?

-
Image
  WHAT CAUSES ITCHING, AND WHAT STOPS IT?         It can be a relief to scratch the occasional itch, but when itch gets out of control, it can become a severe health problem. How does the body know when to stop? Scientists at UC San Francisco are getting close to an answer. In a breakthrough that could transform how doctors treat conditions from eczema to allergies, they have discovered a feedback loop centered on a single immune protein called IL-31 that causes the urge to itch and dials back nearby inflammation. The findings, published on October 13th in  Science Immunology , lay the groundwork for a new generation of drugs that interact more intelligently with the body's innate self-regulating ability. Previous approaches suggested that IL-31 signals itch and promotes skin inflammation. However, the UCSF team discovered that nerve cells, or neurons, that respond to IL-31, triggering a scratch, also prevent immune cells from overreacting and causing more widespread irritation. &q
Read more

A VEGAN DIET IMPROVES CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH, ACCORDING TO A NEW STUDY

-
Image
  A VEGAN DIET IMPROVES CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH, ACCORDING TO A NEW STUDY         In a study with 22 pairs of identical twins, Stanford Medicine researchers and their colleagues have found that a vegan diet improves cardiovascular health in as little as eight weeks. Although it's well-known that eating less meat improves cardiovascular health, diet studies often need to be enhanced by genetic differences, upbringing, and lifestyle choices. By studying identical twins, however, the researchers were able to control for genetics and limit the other factors, as the twins grew up in the same households and reported similar lifestyles. "Not only did this study provide a groundbreaking way to assert that a vegan diet is healthier than the conventional omnivore diet, but the twins were also a riot to work with," said Christopher Gardner, Ph.D., the Rehnborg Farquhar Professor and a professor of medicine. "They dressed the same, they talked the same, and they had a banter betwe
Read more