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A Longitudinal Study of Childhood Depression and Anxiety in Relation to Weight Gain

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Abstract

Adult mood disturbances are highly correlated with obesity, although little is known about the developmental relationship between mood disorders and weight. This study investigated the relationship between childhood psychopathology and weight over the course of 3 years. Body Mass Index (BMI) percentiles and demographic data of children (ages 8–18) with depression (n = 143) or anxiety (n = 43) were compared to healthy controls (n = 99). Both childhood depression (χ 2 = 4.6, p = 0.03) and anxiety (χ 2 = 6.0, p = 0.01) were associated with increased BMI percentiles. Compared to controls, BMI percentiles of depressed females over the course of the study differed profoundly (χ 2 = 7.0, p = 0.01) and BMI percentiles of anxious females approached significance (χ 2 = 3.7, p = 0.06). Males with anxiety showed a greater trend towards overweight (χ 2 = 3.3, p = 0.07) in comparison to controls. The major finding that depression and anxiety are associated with increased BMI percentiles in a non-obese sample suggests that childhood psychopathology is an important factor that should be carefully monitored.

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Acknowledgments

The author would like to acknowledge the dedicated assistance of Stefanie Weiss, Psychology Research Fellow, University of Michigan, and Megan Barna, Guided Research Assistant, University of Pittsburgh. This research was supported by grant P01-MH41712 (Dr. Ryan) from the National Institute of Mental Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Weight Management & Wellness Center, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, 3510 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA

    Dana L. Rofey, Eva M. Szigethy, Robert B. Noll & Ronald E. Dahl

  2. Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Dana L. Rofey, Rachel P. Kolko, Jennifer S. Silk, Eva M. Szigethy, Robert B. Noll, Neal D. Ryan & Ronald E. Dahl

  3. Department of Public Health Sciences, Division of Biostatistics, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA

    Ana-Maria Iosif

  4. Center for Research on Healthcare—Data Center, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    James E. Bost & Wentao Feng

Authors
  1. Dana L. Rofey
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  2. Rachel P. Kolko
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  3. Ana-Maria Iosif
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  4. Jennifer S. Silk
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  6. Wentao Feng
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  7. Eva M. Szigethy
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  8. Robert B. Noll
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  9. Neal D. Ryan
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  10. Ronald E. Dahl
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Correspondence to Dana L. Rofey.

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Rofey, D.L., Kolko, R.P., Iosif, AM. et al. A Longitudinal Study of Childhood Depression and Anxiety in Relation to Weight Gain. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 40, 517–526 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-009-0141-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-009-0141-1

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