Obesity correlates with psychiatric disorders.Already linked to diabetes and heart disease, obesity is also associated with heightened risks of major depression and bipolar and panic disorders, a national survey shows. Previous surveys demonstrated the obesity-depression link. The new survey of about 9,000 adults 18 and older from across the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. extends the association to bipolar disorder bipolar disorder, formerly manic-depressive disorder or manic-depression, severe mental disorder involving manic episodes that are usually accompanied by episodes of depression. , general anxiety and panic disorder. Gregory Simon of the Group Health Cooperative Group Health Cooperative, based in Seattle, Washington, is a consumer-governed nonprofit healthcare system. Established in 1947, it today provides coverage and care for about 540,000 people in Washington and Idaho and is one of the largest private employers in Washington. in Seattle and his colleagues found that obese adults were 25 percent more likely than normal-weight adults to report any of the mood or anxiety disorders Anxiety disorders A group of distinct psychiatric disorders characterized by marked emotional distress and social impairment, including generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. , including depression. However, that same population of obese adults was 25 percent less likely than normal-weight people to report drug or alcohol abuse during their lifetimes. Interestingly, says Simon, white people and high-income individuals showed the strongest link between obesity and psychiatric disorders, even though those two groups generally have a low rate of obesity. The team's analysis took into account participants' age, sex, and smoking status, the researchers report in the July Archives of General Psychiatry Archives of General Psychiatry is a monthly professional medical journal published by the American Medical Association. Archives of General Psychiatry publishes original, peer-reviewed articles about psychiatry, mental health, behavioral science and related fields. . The team didn't try to establish cause and effect between obesity and psychiatric disorders, but "it's pretty likely that things go in both directions" says Simon. --E.J. |
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