Anxiety and Mental Health | increased risk for women with > abdominal fat


... according to a study published online in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society.
The study evaluated the link between waist-to-height ratio and anxiety in 5580 Latin American women age 40 through 59. Some 58% of the women in the study were postmenopausal, and 61.3% said they experienced anxiety.
Women in the middle and upper thirds of waist-to-height ratios were significantly more likely to experience anxiety, researchers found. Furthermore, women with waist-to-height ratios in the upper third were more likely to display signs of anxiety compared with women in the lower two-thirds.
During midlife, anxiety is more frequent in women, research suggests. Researchers believe this could be due to lower levels of estrogen, which has a neuroprotective function.

“This study provides valuable insights for health care providers treating middle-aged women, because it implies that waist-to-height ratio could be a good marker for evaluating patients for anxiety.”