Among men, lack of decision authority at work and lack of skill discretion was associated with greater weight gain. Skill discretion can be defined as the ability to learn new skills on the job and to perform interesting job duties.

Overall, this study found that people who reported increased psychological stress gained more weight if they already had higher body mass indexes (BMI), said a Harvard release.

A similar weight-gain pattern was not found among lower-weight people who were dealing with the same types of stress, according to the study.

When coping with life's stressful periods, individuals may change their eating behaviours, which can lead to changes in weight.

These findings are scheduled to appear in the July 15 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.