Noting a link between depression and belly fat, U.S. researchers have suggested that addressing abdominal fat in treating depression.

At the beginning the 15-year study those reporting high levels of depression gained weight at a faster rate than those reporting low depression, said study leader Barbara Needham of the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Published in the American Journal of Public Health, the study found by year five of the study the high-depression group averaged a waist circumference more than one-half inch greater than that of the group reporting low depression. By the study's end, the waist circumference of the high-depression group was more than 1 inch greater than that of the less depressed group.

Needham also noted that starting out overweight did not lead to changes in depression.

Needham said in a statement, "Our study is important because if you are interested in controlling obesity, and ultimately eliminating the risk of obesity-related diseases, then it makes sense to treat people's depression. It's another reason to take depression seriously and not to think about it just in terms of mental health, but to also think about the physical consequences of mental health problems."

It was further reported that Needham and colleagues used data from 5,115 men and women ages 18-30 enrolled in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults study. (With Inputs from Agencies)