Excess body weight in children is linked to psychological and social problems like anxiety, depression, and poor self-esteem — but following a healthy diet may reduce the link between excess weight and these mental health problems, according to a new study published in the journal JAMA Network Open.
Staying mentally healthy can be a challenge for people with diabetes, adults and children alike. Several studies have looked at the impact of diabetes distress, in particular — the mental toll of worrying about your diabetes management or blood glucose control. This type of distress is usually counterproductive when it comes to diabetes-related outcomes — research has shown that younger people with type 1 diabetes who report high levels of diabetes distress tend to have higher A1C levels (a measure of long-term blood glucose control), while reducing diabetes distress has been shown to improve blood glucose control.
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As growing numbers of children develop obesity and type 2 diabetes, though, many researchers have grown concerned about the impact these conditions could have on mental health — and, in turn, what might be done to reduce this mental health burden. Previous studies have shown that regular exercise can substantially reduce the risk for problems like depression and anxiety, so it stands to reason that other lifestyle measures — like a healthy diet — could also have a beneficial effect on mental health.
For the latest study, researchers looked at the relationship between body weight, diet quality, and psychological and social problems in a group of 3,772 children in Spain. The average age of participants was 9.5 years old, and the proportion with overweight or obesity was 38.4%. Survey data was collected in 2017, and the researchers analyzed it in 2021. This analysis involved calculating participants’ body-mass index (BMI, a measure of body weight that takes heigh into account) and comparing it with diet quality as measured by a scale called the Spanish Healthy Eating Index, as well as psychological and social problems as measured by the outcome of what’s known as the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, which was completed by participants’ parents or guardians.
Healthy diet linked to fewer psychological or social problems
The researchers found that overall, a higher BMI was linked to greater psychological and social problems as indicated by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. But this relationship wasn’t the same across all scores for the Spanish Healthy Eating Index, which range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating a healthier diet. Participants with a healthy diet score below 67.5 tended to see a stronger relationship between excess body weight and greater psychological and nutritional problems, compared with the overall study group. Participants with a healthy diet score between 67.5 and 84.9 showed a fairly consistent relationship between excess body weight and mental health issues. And participants with a healthy diet score above 84.9 — those with the healthiest diets — were less likely to experience psychological or social problems if they had excess body weight.
These results indicate that while excess body weight was linked to greater mental health problems, it wasn’t the only factor in how likely children were to develop these problems — even at the same level of overweight or obesity, children who followed a healthier diet were less likely to experience psychological and social problems. The researchers noted several ways that a healthy diet could reduce the likelihood of experiencing mental health problems, including the beneficial effects of vitamins and minerals in general, omega-3 fatty acids, and dietary fiber on gut and brain health.
“These findings may have public health implications, indicating that improving diet quality could be a strategy by which to prevent psychosocial problems among children and adolescents with excess weight,” the researchers concluded — and suggesting that attempts to lose weight could be detrimental to mental health if children aren’t following a high-quality diet as part of that process.
Want to learn more about eating well with diabetes? Read “Strategies for Healthy Eating,” “Improving Your Recipes: One Step at a Time,” and “What Is the Best Diet for Diabetes?”
