Treat Your Mind and Your Weight

It may seem like a question that does not need to be asked. Does depression make losing weight harder? Scientists say they have demonstrated a correlation between depression and weight loss and this new information may help weight loss doctors to develop new strategies to help their patients.

Researchers at the University of Washington studied a group of 200 obese women for one year. The women ranging in age from 40 to 60 had suffered some symptoms of depression and had an average BMI of about 38. BMI or body mass index considers a person’s height and weight and the associated risk for obesity related disease. The average healthy BMI is between 20 and 25.

The women were separated into two groups. One group focused only on weight loss, while the second group not only tried to lose weight, but were also treated for their symptoms of depression. Both groups of women attended twenty six group sessions throughout a one year period.

Of those who received treatment for their depression, thirty-eight percent were able to lose at least five percent of their original weight. The group that was not treated for depression showed that only twenty-one percent of the women were able to achieve the same rate of success.

While the study may have been short in duration, the scientists involved also found that the women treated for depression while they were trying to lose weight were more successful at keeping that weight off after one year.

Researchers reported the results of the study in the journal, General Hospital Psychiatry, concluded that women who received treatment and experienced at least short term improvement in their depression had increased their weight loss.

So whether you consider weight loss surgery or just a diet to achieve weight loss goals, a healthy mind will help you be a success in your weight loss.