Weight gain tied to mental well-being among women

A new study has found that while physical health deteriorates when weight is gained, mental well-being seems to improve, especially in women.

These results by scientists from the Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen offer valuable information for preventive strategies in the fight against obesity.

Scientists from the Institute of Health Economics and Health Care Management (IGM) and from the Institute of Epidemiology II (EPI II) discovered that weight gain leads to deterioration in physical health.

Female study participants, however, experienced improved mental quality of life as their weight increased, a result that was observed even in women who were already overweight when the study began.

For this study, Professor Dr. Rolf Holle, Michael Laxy and their team evaluated data from the population-based longitudinal KORA study on the association between body weight and health-related quality of life.

Over a period of seven years, the weight of more than 3000 people was measured, the body-mass index (BMI) was calculated and the health-related quality of life was assessed on the basis of a standardized questionnaire.

The study is published in the 'International Journal of Public Health'.