Association between obesity and depression in Canadians.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the age and sex variations in the associations between obesity and depression.


METHODS
This analysis was based on data from 59,652 adults >or=18 years of age in the provinces of Nova Scotia, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia, who participated in the Canadian Community Health Survey conducted in 2005. The survey included a set of 27 questions about symptoms of depression, which were taken from the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Based on these questions, depression scores were calculated and used to define depression, which corresponds to a 90% likelihood of a positive diagnosis of major depressive episode. Body weight and height were based on self-report.


RESULTS
The prevalence of depression was 5.3% in adults living in the five provinces and was higher in women than in men. People with abnormal body weight tended to have an increased risk of depression. On average, obesity and being underweight were associated with approximately 30% and 40% increases in depression, respectively. Particularly in women, depression was more markedly associated with obesity in the 18-39 year age group (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.29-2.15) and with being underweight in the 40-59 year age group (OR 2.23, 95% CI 1.45-3.42) than other age groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Obesity is associated with an increased risk of depression in younger women.
Department of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. ychen@uottawa.ca
Yue
Y
Chen
Ying
Y
Jiang
Yang
Y
Mao
D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000416:Alberta / Q000453:epidemiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D001955:British Columbia / Q000453:epidemiology; D015897:Comorbidity; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009674:Nova Scotia / Q000453:epidemiology; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D011792:Quebec / Q000453:epidemiology; D012525:Saskatchewan / Q000453:epidemiology; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016387:Women's Health; D055815:Young Adult