Childhood BMI, adolescent depression, and body dissatisfaction

Depressive symptoms in adolescence are a substantial cause of concern worldwide since they are highly prevalent and are associated with an increased risk of suicidal behaviour. 1 Gili M Castellví P Vives M et al. Mental disorders as risk factors for suicidal behavior in young people: a meta-analysis and systematic review of longitudinal studies. J Affect Disord. 2019; 245: 152-162 Crossref PubMed Scopus (150) Google Scholar Recent evidence indicates the increasing and alarming prevalence of depressive symptoms in the past decade, 2 Shorey S Ng ED Wong CHJ Global prevalence of depression and elevated depressive symptoms among adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Clin Psychol. 2022; 61: 287-305 Crossref PubMed Scopus (141) Google Scholar which calls for societies to make meaningful changes to prevent escalating mental health problems. There are several risk factors related to depressive disorders. Potentially modifiable risk factors include childhood adverse experiences, metabolic risk factors, and obesity. 3 Dragioti E Radua J Solmi M et al. Global population attributable fraction of potentially modifiable risk factors for mental disorders: a meta-umbrella systematic review. Mol Psychiatry. 2022; 27: 3510-3519 Crossref Scopus (19) Google Scholar Interestingly, there seems to be a significant positive association between childhood and adolescent obesity and depression. 4 Rao WW Zong QQ Zhang JW et al. Obesity increases the risk of depression in children and adolescents: results from a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Affect Disord. 2020; 267: 78-85 Crossref PubMed Scopus (10) Google Scholar Longitudinal pathways between childhood BMI, body dissatisfaction, and adolescent depression: an observational study using the UK Millenium Cohort StudyOur findings bear relevance for interventions aimed at reducing weight in childhood and reducing body dissatisfaction. Implementation of evidence-based body image interventions and identification of drivers of weight stigma should be key public health priorities. Interventions aiming to reduce weight in childhood need to avoid increasing body dissatisfaction and should target environmental drivers of weight rather than individuals. Full-Text PDF Open Access