Obesity and depression

A U.S. study of 4,641 women aged between 40 and 65 asked them about their height, weight, exercise levels, dietary habits and body image. The women also completed the Patient Health Questionnaire, a measure of depression symptoms. Women with clinical depression were more than twice as likely to be obese and obese women were more than twice as likely to be depressed. Obese women exercised the least, had the poorest body image and ate 20% more calories than thinner women. The links between obesity and depression held true even when the researchers took into account marital status, education, smoking and antidepressant use.

You can find out more about this research at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2008/01/14/association-between-depression-and-obesity/1777.html