Associations between Mental Health Disorders and Body Mass Index among Military Personnel

Objective: To determine if overweight or obesity is associated with mental health disorder (MHD) symptoms among military personnel Methods: Secondary analysis using the 2005 Department of Defense Health Related Behaviors Survey (N = 15,195). Standard Body Mass Index (BMI) categories were used to classify participants' body composition. Results: For women, obesity was associated with symptoms of serious psychological distress (SPD), post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression. For men, obesity and overweight was associated with symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder and SPD, respectively. Self-reported high personal stress was the strongest predictor of MHD symptoms and suicide attempts. Conclusion: Self-reported stress was a stronger predictor of MHD symptoms than BMI. There is potential value in screening personnel for personal stress as a MHD risk factor.