Cushion for the soul

Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.

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A slim line does not necessarily make you happy - those who gain weight are often more psychologically stable afterwards, according to a study. Nevertheless, this is not a call for unrestrained feasting

"A pound off every day!", "Flat stomach in four days!", "The new tomato diet!" - It feels like every second magazine title calls for slimming down. Slim is beautiful, whoever is thin is successful, being overweight shows indiscipline - myths about the figure put women especially under pressure. Every kilo more on the scales should therefore not only burden the body, but also the mind.

The reality is obviously different. At least one study by scientists at the Helmholtz Zentrum München comes to a completely different result: According to this, physical health suffers from the additional weight, but psychological well-being improves - especially in women. "At first glance, that surprised us a bit," says study director Prof. Rolf Holle in an interview with .

Physical condition and mental stability

The team led by Holle and Michael Laxy are evaluating data from 3,000 people that were recorded as part of the so-called KORA longitudinal study. At the beginning, the participants were between 25 and 74 years old. Initially and after seven years, they were weighed and their body mass index determined. In addition, their health-related quality of life was determined using a standardized questionnaire. In addition to questions relating to the physical condition, such as the limitations in everyday life such as climbing stairs, questions were also asked about mental well-being, for example "How often have you felt sad or discouraged in the past four weeks?" or "How often are you calm and serene?".

More pounds, more serenity

As expected, participants who put on weight were usually worse together physically than before. Mental health, on the other hand, improved astonishingly - especially in women. And that did not only apply to those participants who started the study as hunger pangs - women who had too many pounds on their ribs at the beginning also felt better psychologically if they continued to gain weight. On the other hand, people who lost weight tended to be more emotionally unstable. The study does not provide any reasons why this is so. One possible explanation, however, is that eating is great at relieving stress. "That can stabilize the psyche," says Holle. In short: if you have a good time, you will feel better too.

Weight loss factor

The results show once again why it is so darn difficult to lose weight: "The deterioration in mental health is a major obstacle," explains the researcher. Dieting is a stress factor - and it affects the mind - an experience that probably everyone who has tried to lose weight has had. "If you want to lose weight, you should keep that in mind," says Holle. Even when the pounds drop, you are not automatically fine. "That should take weight-loss programs into account - and deal with it psychologically," demands the scientist. Another message that you can take with you: Those who are emotionally unstable anyway should postpone their diet plans.

Conversely, the researchers cannot recommend that everyone who feels emotionally battered should feed themselves a few kilos. Holle warns: "At the latest when diet-related illnesses such as diabetes or cardiovascular problems occur in addition to being overweight, the quality of life also suffers."

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