title: Longitudinal associations of obesity with affective disorders and suicidality in the Baltimore epidemiologic catchment area follow-up study.
abstract: Our aim was to examine the longitudinal associations between obesity and mental health variables (psychiatric diagnoses and suicidal behaviors). Data were from waves 3 and 4 of the Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area study (N = 1071). Participants were aged 30 to 86 years at wave 3 (mean, 47.6 years; SD, 12.8). The prevalence of obesity increased from 27.6% to 39.1% during the follow-up. Logistic regression analyses revealed no associations between baseline obesity and onset of mental disorders or suicidal behaviors between waves 3 and 4 in fully adjusted models; however, baseline obesity predicted new-onset suicide attempts in models adjusted for sociodemographics and mental disorders. Baseline depression predicted weight gain during the 11-year follow-up period (F = 4.014, p < 0.05), even after controlling for important confounders. Overall, most mental health variables were not associated with obesity, suggesting that clinicians and others should be wary of "weight-ism" and avoid making the assumption that higher body weight relates to mental health problems.
authors.affiliation: Departments of *Psychology, †Psychiatry, and ‡Internal Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; §Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD; and ∥Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
authors.forename: Christine A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Henriksen
authors.forename: Amber A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Mather
authors.forename: Corey S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Mackenzie
authors.forename: Oscar Joseph
authors.initials: OJ
authors.lastname: Bienvenu
authors.forename: Jitender
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sareen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015142:Baltimore / Q000453:epidemiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D015897:Comorbidity; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015430:Weight Gain