Mom's Depression Linked to Kid's Inactivity

Overweight, depressed moms mean more TV, less exercise for their kids, says study

THURSDAY, Oct. 11, 2001 (HealthDayNews) -- Preschool children whose mothers are depressed and overweight watch more TV and spend less time outdoors, and that could lead to obesity later in life, a new study suggests.

The study, presented this week to the North American Association for the Study of Obesity meeting in Quebec City, looked at 150 low-income mothers of preschool children, ages 3 to 5. On average, their children watched two hours of television a day. However, children whose mothers were depressed but of normal weight watched 2½ hours of television daily; children whose mothers were both obese and depressed watched 3½ hours every day. More time staring at the screen translates into less time outdoors, say the study's authors.

"The focus was on determining some of the barriers to physical activity, and one barrier was the inability to plan opportunities for the child to be active," says lead study author Dr. Hillary Burdette, a pediatrician at Children's Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati. "We thought maternal depression would be a logical barrier to [the ability] to plan."

No one knows exactly how a mother's depression and the child's activity levels are linked, but it's possible that because a depressed mom is lethargic and less able to interact with others, she also is less able to plan activities and outings. "What we're trying to understand is how young children spend their time, and I think we have to think about mothers' well-being because it's really the mother who needs to be providing these opportunities," says Burdette.

"The research I'm seeing indicates that it's inactivity, not what kids are eating, that is causing obesity," says Frances M. Berg, a family health specialist who is an adjunct professor of rural health at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and founder and editor of Healthy Weight Journal. "And certainly there's less activity if the television is being used for a babysitter versus letting kids go outside to play."

"I think the concept of mothers and depression very clearly is going to increase the risk of obesity because it's the same issue," says Dr. Ira Sacker, director and founder of HEED (Helping to End Eating Disorders) at Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center, in Brooklyn, N.Y., and author of the book Dying to Be Thin. "The child sees the mother eating, being overweight, being unhappy and therefore not demonstrating to the child by example a behavior that's going to be effective."

The study involved only low-income (at or below 185 percent of poverty level) white women in rural Vermont, so the results may not apply to everybody. "It's too small a group to go and totally suggest that this is a definite, but it shows the complications of some of the issues that can lead to obesity and disordered eating in families," says Sacker.

On the other hand, Burdette says, "Depression and obesity are common in low-income populations, so it's a good population to study for that reason. It could be a potential target population."

The issue of physical activity for kids is a universal one, says Berg. "What is missing for 2, 3 and 4-year-olds is a lot of time playing outside. It's what's desperately needed for our children."

What To Do:

To learn more about kids and exercise, visit the American Heart Association's Exercise and Children site.

To learn more about kids and obesity, try the American Heart Association's Obesity and Overweight in Children site.

Dr. Sacker's Helping to End Eating Disorders Web site has information on HEED and links to other sites.

Frances Berg's Web site, Healthy Weight Network, features scientific research on dieting and weight loss programs, eating disorders, obesity, size acceptance, diet quackery and more.

You can also visit the American Academy of Pediatrics for information on the influence of television and how parents can moderate that influence.

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