Obese men less likely to commit suicide

Maybe they just don't have the energy to kill themselves. It's well known that among the very depressed they have to be watched closely when they start to get better because they get back just enough physical and mental energy to want to kill themselves before they get to the next level.

clipped from www.latimes.com Obese men less likely to commit suicide, study finds Researchers say higher amounts of insulin increase the levels of serotonin, a key brain chemical that regulates mood. By Denise Gellene, Times Staff Writer March 13, 2007 A new study has found that obese men have a much lower risk of suicide, a finding that scientists think may be related to their higher production of insulin and other hormones that affect mood. The study, published today in the Archives of Internal Medicine, reported that obese men were 42% less likely to commit suicide than those at the lower end of the normal-weight range. He cautioned that the study was not applicable to women, in part because of hormone differences related to gender. In addition, he said, the stigma of obesity falls more heavily on women, causing anxiety and other adverse effects on mood.