Relationship of Major Depression with Body Mass Index and Salivary Cortisol

Dose-response association of obesity and risk of mental health among tehranian residents: result of a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Obesity and mental health issues are two of the most prevalent global public health issues for a significant portion of people. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between obesity indicators and mental health in Tehran-dwelling Iranian adults.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study on healthy Iranian adults using a convenience sampling technique. The short form of the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) was used to measure the outcome, and independent variables included body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), body adiposity index (BAI), and a body shape index (ABSI). The relationship between obesity and mental health was investigated using a multivariate logistic regression model. The non-linear dose-response relationships were evaluated using restricted cubic splines (RCS) with three knots. The Benjamini-Hochberg procedure was used to adjust for multiple testing.

RESULTS

In our study of 434 participants, females made up 52% of the participants, with a mean age of 38.57 years. In all, 54.6%, 53.9%, and 56.6% were classified as having anxiety, depression, and stress respectively. Logistic regression analysis showed that the odds of mental health components including anxiety, depression, or stress was not significantly different across the tertiles of the obesity indicators. We observed a significant dose-response relationship between BAI and ABSI and the risk of anxiety (PBenjamini-Hochberg 0.028 > Pdose-response 0.023) and stress (PBenjamini-Hochberg 0.028 > Pdose-response 0.003) but not depression (PBenjamini-Hochberg 0.014 < Pdose-response 0.018). The lowest risk for anxiety was observed in people with a BAI of 28% and ABSI equal to 0.079. The risk of stress seemed to increase beyond an ABSI of 0.086.

CONCLUSION

Our findings showed no direct linear association between obesity indices and anxiety. However, a dose-response relationship was observed between BAI and ABSI and the risk of anxiety and stress, indicating the need for further investigation.

Comparison of Dutch healthy eating and healthy eating indexes and anthropometry in patients with major depression with health subjects: a case-control study

Background

Diseases and disorders related to mental health are spreading like other chronic diseases all around the world. Considering the role of food in the prevention and treatment of these disorders, including major depression, investigating the relationship between different food patterns and this disorder is of particular importance. The aim of this study was to compare Dutch healthy eating and healthy eating indexes and anthropometry in patients with major depression with healthy individuals.

Methods

In this case-control study, the final analysis was performed on 67 men and 111 women with an age range of 20-30 years. Height (cm), weight (kg), food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), physical activity (MET-min/week), demographic and PHQ-9 questionnaires were taken from all participants. In the following, all the food ingredients and their components were extracted and used to calculate HEI-2015 and DHD. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software with independent t-test, logistic regression and chi-square.

Results

It was found that people with major depression in this study were mostly women and occupied. The average HEI-2015 in healthy people and those with major depression was 58 and 54.3, respectively. Also, the average DHD in these people was 60.5 and 55, respectively. HEI-2015 and DHD had a significant negative correlation with depression score (r = -0.16, p-value = 0.03) (r = -0.19, p-value = 0.01). Also, in the logistic regression model, before and even after adjusting confounders, HEI-2015 and DHD had a reduced odds ratio in people suffering from major depression. The two groups did not differ significantly in terms of the average factors of height, weight and body mass index (BMI).

Conclusion

It seems that HEI2015 and DHD have a significant relationship in reducing major depression. However, due to the small number of studies in this regard, especially in the field of DHD, the need for more studies seems necessary.

The association between comorbid body dysmorphic disorder and depression: moderation effect of age and mediation effect of body mass index and body image among Pakistani students

Background

American Psychological Association defined body dysmorphic disorder as being obsessed with observed (preoccupied) flaws in one’s appearance. The observed flaws cause ample distress and/or worsening in the quality of life, isolation, lessening in social or professional functioning, while also being linked to depression and attempt suicide. Generally, younger individuals are more displeased and anxious about defects that can be seen or unseen. The study aimed to explore the predictive role of body mass index and body image in the relationship between comorbid body dysmorphic disorder and depressive symptoms among adults. A cross-sectional study used self-report measures; for depression, body apperception, and body dysmorphic disorder scale were administered to 281 undergraduate and post-graduate adults of Hazara division, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, consisting male (54.80%) and women (45.19%).

Results

Results indicated that body dysmorphic disorder was positively associated with body image and negatively with depression. As males are prone to stressors in Pakistani society, stressors overwhelm them more than females (Cohen’s d = .436). On body mass index categories, depression, age, and gender were substantially different in three categories. Structural equation modeling evidenced that body dysmorphic disorder indirectly predicts depression when age is used as a moderator and mediation effect of body mass index.

Conclusions

It is concluded that body dysmorphic disorder is prevalent at a younger age, overweight and underweight among adults. Therefore, the complexity of body dysmorphic disorder and its similarity with body image can be better understood within the specific context. The potential implication is it make easy to understand for the researchers and mental health care practitioners.

Diurnal Salivary Cortisol in Relation to Body Composition and Heart Rate Variability in Young Adults

OBJECTIVE

Chronic stress has been related to impaired body composition (bone, muscle, adipose tissue), and disturbed autonomic nervous system (ANS), the latter regulated by hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Our objective was to investigate the relationship between salivary cortisol, body composition and heart rate variability (HRV-highly influenced by ANS), in a young student population.

METHODS

Body composition and HRV parameters were measured using two portable devices based on multi-frequency bioelectrical impedance and photoplethysmography. Body composition included measurement of bone, lean/muscle and adipose tissues. HRV included time domain and frequency domain indices. Salivary cortisol, immediately after awakening, 60 min post awakening and late night was collected and analyzed by ELISA.

RESULTS

Participants included n = 43 healthy university students (39 women, 4 men); 21.1 ± 1.3 years, BMI = 21.8 ± 3.4 kg/m². Skeletal muscle was reduced in most of the participants, bone mass was at the lower normal range, while the fat tissue parameters were normal with only 7% participants being overweight. Cortisol and HRV parameters of sympathetic predominance (low frequency-LF and low frequency/high frequency ratio-LF/HF) were significantly associated with higher fat tissue parameters (fat mass-FM% and intramuscular adipose tissue-IMAT%) (p <0.001 and p = 0.035, respectively) and with lower skeletal muscle (p = 0.002) and bone mass (p = 0.025).

CONCLUSIONS

The results point to a role of cortisol and ANS in the control of all three body composition compartments, suggesting that the stress can result in adverse effects on body composition, even in young, apparently healthy individuals.

The Impact of Epigallocatechin Gallate and Coconut Oil Treatment on Cortisol Activity and Depression in Multiple Sclerosis Patients

(1) Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is pathogenically characterized by high oxidative stress and symptomatically by progressive muscle loss and increased body fat associated with the presence of depression. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) (particularly present in green tea) and ketone bodies (in particular beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB)), whose main source is coconut oil, have shown emotional benefits and body fat loss. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of EGCG and coconut oil on cortisol activity related to fat loss and depression in MS patients. (2) Methods: The study involved 51 MS patients who were randomly divided into an intervention group or a control group. The intervention group received 800 mg of EGCG and 60 mL of coconut oil, which were included in their daily diet for four months. The control group received placebo and all patients followed an isocaloric diet. A blood sample was collected before and after the four-month period, and levels of cortisol, albumin and BHB were measured in serum. In addition, immediately before and after the intervention, anthropometric variables were measured: waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), body fat mass percentage, fat weight, total weight, and muscle mass percentage. Depression was assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). (3) Results: No significant changes were obtained in cortisol levels in any of the groups, and there was a significant increase in albumin in the blood of the intervention group only that could lead to a decrease in serum free cortisol. In addition, it was observed a significant decrease in levels of depression and abdominal fat. (4) Conclusions: EGCG combined with coconut oil increase the concentration of albumin in blood and produce less depression in MS patients.

Relationship of Salivary Cortisol Level With Severe Depression and Family History

Salivary cortisol level is considered a prominent depression biomarker, as saliva induces less stress as compared to blood. The study was performed in the physiology department, Sheikh Zayed Medical Institute Lahore from April 2015 to December 2015. Sixty participants, including 14 (46.67%) males and 16 (53.33%) females, in each non-depressive and depressive group of over 17 years of age, were undertaken. The depression diagnostics were performed both outdoors and in clinics and confirmed with the standards of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and Beck's Inventory. Saliva specimens were collected and processed for enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA), and absorbance was calculated on a microtiter plate reader. The statistics with the Statistical Package for the Social Packages (SPSS) 26.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY) show that patients of the non-depressive category exhibited mean ages 35.73±6.89 years and 39.10±6.89 years in the depressive group (p-value: 0.178). The mean cortisol level was 1.46±0.91 ng/ml among non-depressive and 2.23±1.69 in depressive patients (p-value: 0.031). The mean depression score among non-depressive was 5.73±4.05 and 52.03±5.08 while there was no statistical difference in the mean height and weight of subjects in normal and depressive patients (p-value: 0.0001). Meanwhile, the mean cortisol level was 1.46±0.91 ng/ml among non-depressive patients, while it was 2.23±1.69 in the depressive group, with no statistical difference in mean ages (p-value: 0.031). These findings proved the cortisol level directly linked with severe depression and useful for depression diagnostics and management.