Background: Mental ill-health and obesity are increasingly prevalent in childhood with both conditions likely to co-occur. Less is known about associations between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and mental ill-health and obesity (MH-OB) comorbidity in adolescence. The aim of this study was to examine associations between ACEs and MH-OB comorbidity in adolescents from a national cohort study.
Methods: Participants; 10,734 adolescents (males = 50.3%) from the Millennium Cohort Study with 6 ACEs (for e.g., parental MH, drug/alcohol misuse, physical punishment) collected prospectively between ages 3-11 years. MH-OB comorbidity (binary indicator) was based on objectively measured BMI (for overweight/obesity) and self-reported depression/anxiety at ages 14 and 17. Associations between: 1.total ACE scores (0, 1, 2 or ≥3) and additionally each individual ACE, and MH-OB, were analysed used logistic regression, separately at 14 and 17 years.
Results: At age 14, ACE scores were associated with higher odds for MH-OB comorbidity, with a gradient of increasing odds ratios (OR) with increasing ACEs. Individuals with 1 (OR:1.22[95%CI: 1.1-1.6]), 2 (OR:1.7[1.3-2.3]), or ≥3ACEs (OR:2[1.5-2.6]) had increased odds for MH-OB comorbidity compared to those with 0 ACEs. At age 17, associations between ACE scores and MH-OB were attenuated and observed in individuals with ≥3ACEs (OR:1.54, 1.1-2.3). Parental MH (OR:1.5, 1.2-1.9), intimate-partner violence (OR:1.2, 1.1-1.6), physical punishment (OR:1.3, 1.1-1.6), bullying (OR:2, 1.6-2.5) were associated with MH-OB comorbidity age 14. However, only parental MH (OR:1.5, 1.1-2.1) and bullying (OR:1.6, 1.2-2.1) were associated with MH-OB comorbidity at age 17.
Conclusion: ACEs are associated with increased risk of MH-OB comorbidity in between ages 14 and 17. These findings provide timely opportunity for interventions to reduce risk and are pertinent given that MH and obesity contribute significantly to global burden of disease and track across the lifecourse.
