What kinds of issues can make obesity actually a mental health problem?

Losing Self Esteem: When obesity causes loss of self-esteem it can be a cause of numerous mental problems, especially in teens and younger people. This includes feelings of inadequacy regarding appearance, sports performance, ability to make friends and interact. Obesity often causes difficulty finding a job. Obese people are felt to be "lazy" by many. Depression & anxiety are the result of these self esteem issues.

Depression & obesity: Depression itself can lead to obesity, because many depressed people have no energy to exercise or to take good care of themselves through healthy diet. There's also evidence that diets high in processed foods may also lead to depression. Lack of self-care is also common in people with histories of childhood abuse, leading to ptsd. Then, some medicines used may predispose to weight gain.

Hormones and health : Obesity actually disrupts circulating estrogen and testosterone leading to hormonal imbalances that affect mental health. The poor health that comes with obesity (diabetes, heart disease, joint disease) has a negative effect on mental health. Finally, obesity can worsen self-image and affect mental health.