The tantalizing link between obesity and depression

What is Depression?

Depression also is known as the major depressive disorder is a common and serious medical illness which negatively affects how a person feels, the way they think and how they act and it is curable. Depression causes feelings of sadness and a loss of interest in activities once a person enjoyed. It will lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems and may decrease a person’s ability to function at work and at home. Defining depression has always been a puzzle. Many people are depressed but mostly unaware of it.

To understand depression is considering the two consisting factors or primary components. The Depression is the psychological or “cognitive” component which affects the mood, and the physical or “somatic” component which influences areas such as appetite and sleep and viewing depression as sometimes that helps to determine the primary cause of the problem.

Both obesity and depression have become a significant global health problem.

However, based on observational studies has not been able to demonstrate whether obesity causes depression, as there are many competing factors to consider. Obesity is a risk factor for a number of conditions, and it might be dealing with other health issues which increases the likelihood of becoming depressed, rather than the obesity being the cause and some researchers have argued that the relationship might be vice versa: depression is a risk for obesity.

Obesity might make depression occur more likely at initially, but once depressive symptoms arise, they might be compound obesity by making it harder for the individual to exercise.

Childhood obesity and Depression:

Childhood obesity can lead to a host of physical problems in children and adolescents, including type II diabetes, heart disease, and stroke, the latter becoming more frequently seen in teens and young adults. Sleep apnea which is caused by obesity and early onset of puberty is also seen. Aside from the physical problems stemming from obesity, parents should also be on alert for depression in their children.

Children who are obese at ages 10 through 13 have an 80% chance of being obese as an adult, However, along with that will come to the serious diseases caused by obesity, resulting in adult depression. The causes of obesity are complex and include biological, behavioral, genetic, and cultural factors. Obesity occurs when a person eats more calories than the body actually burns up.

The genomic study directly links depression to obesity

Researchers separated the psychological impact of obesity and the effect of obesity-related health problems on depression by selecting and testing genes associated with higher BMI and lower risk of related disease like diabetes. These genes were which are strongly associated with depression as those genes associated with higher BMI and diabetes. According to this, being overweight might causes depression in both with and without related health issues especially in women.

Brain chemicals are both involved in mood and weight gain which often overlaps. Hormones for weight metabolism and depression, including stress hormones, might be a major play in increasing body weight. These hormones including cortisol which is also known as the so-called stress hormone, and leptin, which also regulates the body fat storage.

Treatment

Some weight-management therapies can lead to emotional ups and downs that can cause or worsen depression. A “diet” has a lot of opportunities for failure or setbacks, which can challenge a person who’s already dealing with mental health issues.

However, with a team of experts could guide, encourage, and hold accountable, it’s possible to find a treatment plan that works for both conditions.

Depression and obesity are both chronic conditions that require long-term care and attention and really important to focus on changing lifestyle behaviors.