Dutch psychiatrists say that obesity and depression are intimately linked.
In fact, being obese and being depressed is growing. A team at the University of Leyden examined 15 studies totalling 59,000 people. The study found that obese people are 55% more likely to develop depression, while people who are depressed are 58% more likely to become obese.
In the past, experts have theorized that obesity is often the result of depression and this now seems plausible. Obesity could also be one of the side effects of taking antidepressants.
The rates of depression and obesity have increased in recent years. Worldwide, over 1.6 billion people are overweight and more than 400,000 of these people are obese.
So this is one reason why scientists are trying to find a way to counter this scourge that causes many health concerns, such as hypertension, diabetes, sleep apnea and cardiovascular disease for example.