title: Obesity and the relationship with positive and negative affect.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the cross-sectional association between overweight and obesity and positive and negative affect.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants included 273 women, aged 29-84 years, who were enrolled in the Geelong Osteoporosis Study (GOS). Weight and height were measured and overweight and obesity determined from body mass index (BMI; kg/m(2)) according to WHO criteria. Medical history and lifestyle exposures were assessed by questionnaire. Positive and negative affect scores were derived using the validated 20-item Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) and categorised into tertiles.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A pattern of greater negative affect scores was observed for increasing levels of BMI. Setting normal weight as the referent category, the odds for having a negative affect score in the highest tertile were sequentially increased for women who were overweight (OR = 1.31, 95% CI: 0.72-2.40) and obese (OR = 1.95, 95% CI: 1.02-3.73). The association between obesity and increased negative affect was diminished by adjusting for physical illness (adjusted OR = 1.76, 95% CI: 0.91-3.42). These associations were not substantially influenced by positive affect score or other exposures. No association was detected between BMI categories and positive affect scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We report data suggesting that obesity is associated with greater negative affect scores, reflecting emotions such as distress, anger, disgust, fear and shame, and that this association is attenuated by physical illness. Further investigations are now warranted to explore possible mechanistic interplay between pathological, neurobiological and psychosocial factors.
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC 3220, Australia. juliep@barwonhealth.org.au
authors.forename: Julie A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Pasco
authors.forename: Lana J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Felice N
authors.initials: FN
authors.lastname: Jacka
authors.forename: Sharon L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Brennan
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Berk
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000523:psychology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Affect; body mass index; depression; mood; obesity