Social and Demographic Factors Associated With Obese Children in the Age Group of 6-12 Years Attending a Tertiary Care Institute in Central India and the Prevalence of Depression in These Children: An Observational Study.

Introduction: Childhood obesity in India is on the rise and is rarely raised as a concern. In the central Indian states, focus is largely on undernutrition. Thus, studies related to risk factors for being overweight and obese and the impact of obesity on the psychology of children are lacking. Hence, a hospital-based study with objectives to identify social and demographic factors associated with obesity and the estimation of the prevalence of depression among these children was conducted.

Methods: This observational study was conducted in a tertiary care institute in the state of Chhattisgarh from July 2020 to October 2021. Children with obesity as per the WHO (> 95 percentile for the BMI) in the age group of 6-12 years were included after due consent. A proforma was administered targeting the objectives of the study and the Childhood Depression Rating Scale (CDR-S) and clinical evaluation identified the depressed.

Results: Among the 5,019 children screened during the study period, 54 met the inclusion criteria (1.07%). Fifty percent of children were from the upper middle class as per the Kuppuswamy scale. Seventy percent consumed junk food more than three times a week. Twenty-three children (42.6%) engaged in physical activity of > 1 hour and 49(90.7%) had a screen time of > 2 hours. The prevalence of depression among these children stood at 5.6% with the mean age being 11.67 years. Multiple logistic regression showed an inverse association of depression with physical activity.

Conclusion: Obesity is prevalent in higher socioeconomic groups. Many risk factors like screen time, junk food consumption, and physical activity are modifiable. The prevalence of depression increased with age. Physical activity showed an inverse relation to depression in obese children.