Female Teens With Family History of Mood Disorder Prone to Weight Gain
Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
THURSDAY, Oct. 19, 2023 -- Female offspring of parents with mood disorders have increased z body mass index (BMI) compared with controls of unaffected parents starting at about 12 years of age, according to a study published online Oct. 19 in JAMA Network Open.
Nitya Adepalli, from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and colleagues conducted a community-based, single-center, acceleration cohort study of youth at familial risk for mood disorders and controls with annual follow-ups from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 31, 2022, to examine the age at which youth with familial risk for mood disorders began to diverge in weight from controls. The study included 394 unaffected female and male offspring of parents with or without a mood disorder.
The researchers found that youth at familial risk for mood disorders showed no overall difference in body weight from controls. However, there was a sex-specific difference observed, with a rapid peripubertal increase in body weight in females at familial risk versus controls, leading to significantly increased zBMI at 12 years and older (β = 0.57), independent of socioeconomic status, prematurity, or birth weight. There was no difference seen for males at familial risk versus controls at any age.
"Further work should consider the association of early intervention on protecting against development of mood and weight conditions in this high-risk group," the authors write. "Additionally, education on the association between mental and physical health with thoughtful consideration of the stigma associated with mental health conditions and increased body weight would provide a great opportunity to empower youth to take charge of their own health."
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted October 2023
Read this next
Risk of Suicide, Homicide Both Higher at Night
FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- The risk of suicide and homicide is higher at night than might be expected based on the number of people awake at that time, according to a study published...
Social Media Use Tied to Depression, but Not Sole Cause in Young Adults
FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- Social media use and depression are associated, but social media use is not prospectively related to the course of depressive symptoms, according to a...
Many Patients Have Discontinuation Symptoms After Stopping Antidepressants
THURSDAY, June 6, 2024 -- A considerable proportion of patients have discontinuation symptoms (e.g., dizziness, headache, nausea, insomnia, and irritability) after...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.