Nutritional Status and Poverty Condition Are Associated with Depression in Preschoolers
Betsabé Jiménez-Ceballos,
Erick Martínez-Herrera,
María Esther Ocharan-Hernández,
Christian Guerra-Araiza,
Eunice D. Farfán García,
Uriel Emiliano Muñoz-Ramírez,
Claudia Erika Fuentes-Venado,
Rodolfo Pinto-Almazán
Affiliations
Betsabé Jiménez-Ceballos
Clínica de Trastornos de Sueño, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Unidad Iztapalapa UAM-I, Av. San Rafael Atlixco 186, Leyes de Reforma 1ra Secc, Iztapalapa, Ciudad de Mexico 09340, Mexico
Erick Martínez-Herrera
Sección de Estudios de Posgrado e Investigación, Escuela Superior de Medicina, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Plan de San Luis y Díaz Mirón, Ciudad de Mexico 11340, Mexico
María Esther Ocharan-Hernández
Sección de Estudios de Posgrado e Investigación, Escuela Superior de Medicina, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Plan de San Luis y Díaz Mirón, Ciudad de Mexico 11340, Mexico
Christian Guerra-Araiza
Unidad de Investigación Médica en Farmacología, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, IMSS, Ciudad de Mexico 06720, Mexico
Eunice D. Farfán García
Sección de Estudios de Posgrado e Investigación, Escuela Superior de Medicina, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Plan de San Luis y Díaz Mirón, Ciudad de Mexico 11340, Mexico
Uriel Emiliano Muñoz-Ramírez
Non-Communicable Disease Research Group, Facultad Mexicana de Medicina, Universidad la Salle-México, las Fuentes 17, Tlalpan Centro I, Tlalpan, Mexico City 14000, Mexico
Claudia Erika Fuentes-Venado
Sección de Estudios de Posgrado e Investigación, Escuela Superior de Medicina, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Plan de San Luis y Díaz Mirón, Ciudad de Mexico 11340, Mexico
Rodolfo Pinto-Almazán
Sección de Estudios de Posgrado e Investigación, Escuela Superior de Medicina, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Plan de San Luis y Díaz Mirón, Ciudad de Mexico 11340, Mexico
Consensus has been reached that symptoms of depression can begin as early as preschool. Nevertheless, only few studies have associated environmental (malnutrition) and social factors (poverty condition, access to health systems, etc.) to the onset of depression in preschoolers. The aim of this study was to explore possible associations between malnutrition (underweight, overweight/obesity), poverty status (home quality, overcrowding), access to healthcare systems and the presence of depressive symptoms in the preschoolers of a semi-rural community. In total, 695 children between 3 and 6 years from the municipality of Chiconcuac, Mexico were evaluated for symptoms of depression with the Preschool Depression Scale for Teachers (ESDM 3-6). Additionally, they were assessed for nutritional status and divided into three groups (low weight, normal weight, overweight/obesity), and their parents were asked to fill out a social demographic questionnaire. Malnutrition status OR = 2.702, 95% CI [1.771–4.145]; UW OR = 4.768, 95% CI [2.570–8.795] and OW/OB OR = 1.959, 95% CI [1.175–3.324]; poverty condition per se OR = 1.779, 95% CI [0.9911–2.630]; housing quality OR = 2.020, 95% CI [0.9606–2.659] and overcrowding = 1.619, 95% CI [0.8989–4.433] were associated to a greater risk for children to show depressive symptoms (DS). Access to healthcare was negatively related with the risk of presenting DS (OR = 0.660, 95% CI [0.3130 to 1.360]). Social and environmental factors such as malnutrition, home quality and overcrowding may increase the risk of presenting DS as soon as in preschool.
