Therapist Unlimited Blog

Those persons who wish to avoid depression when they reach middle age better start eating healthy diet now.
A recent study from the United Kingdom has shown that eating healthy foods such as  high proportion of fruits, vegetables and fish, protects middle aged people against depression compared to a processed food diet containing a high proportion of high fat dairy
food, processed meat, fried food, refined grains and sugar-laden desserts.
The research was made possible through the effort of researchers from the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London (UCL), UK and the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), and University of Montpellier, France.
Based on their study, the researchers revealed that much research on diet and depression tends to focus on individual nutrients so they thought they would look at links between overall dietary patterns and depression.
To get the data, the researchers looked at 3,486 participants of average age 57 years (nearly three quarters were men) who were part of the Whitehall II study.
The Whitehall II study was created by co-author and UCL Professor Sir Michael Marmot to investigate links between disease and social class, psychosocial factors and life style. It began by looking at the health of working people, and is now also looking to answer questions about how previous and current circumstances affect health and quality of life in an ageing group of participants.
The data allowed the researchers to identify two dietary patters: a whole food diet and a processed food diet. The whole food diet comprised mainly fresh fruits and vegetables and fish, while the processed diet comprised mainly sweetened desserts, fried foods, high fat
dairy foods, processed meat and refined grains.
To assess depression, the researchers used self-reported data that had been gathered five years after the dietary data using the CES-D scale. CES-D, short for Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale, is a commonly used self-report questionnaire for assessing depression.
It asks a series of multiple choice questions about how the participant has been feeling over the past week, covering topics such as concentration, loss of appetite, worry, how well they have been able to shake off depressive moods, quality of sleep, feelings of
loneliness, self-worth, energy levels, and so on.

 

 

 

To avoid depression in middle age it is time to engage in a healthy diet now.

 

 

 

When they analysed the results and ruled out potential confounders such as age, gender, education, smoking, exercise, and chronic diseases, the researchers found that:
* Participants in the top 33 per cent (top tertile) of the whole food diet pattern, ie whose diet most closely matched the whole food diet, had a 26 per cent lower risk of receiving a CES-D depression assessment five years later (odds ratio 0.74, with 95 per cent probability of this being in the range 0.56 to 0.99) compared to the bottom 33 per cent (bottom tertile), ie whose diet least closely matched the whole food diet.
* In contrast, participants whose diet was high in processed foods had a 58 per cent higher risk of receiving a CES-D depression rating five years later.
The researchers concluded that:
"In middle-aged participants, a processed food dietary pattern is a risk factor for CES-D depression 5 years later, whereas a whole food pattern is protective."
According to BBC News, co-author Dr Archana Singh-Manoux, who works at UCL and INSERM, suggested there was a possibility that the finding could be explained by a lifestyle factor they had not accounted for.
In other words the study does not prove that a processed food diet causes depression: it could be that people destined to become depressed become inclined to eat more processed foods, that there is a yet undiscovered factor behind both.
However, when results as strong as these emerge, and a consistent pattern linking diet and depression is found by several studies, it would tend to suggest that a healthy diet does protect against mental ill health.
The Chief Executive of the UK-based Mental Health Foundation, Dr Andrew McCulloch told the BBC that:
"This study adds to an existing body of solid research that shows the strong links between what we eat and our mental health."
He said major studies like this were crucial in helping us understand more about how diet contributes to mental illness. He said people in the UK were increasingly adopting unhealthy diets, and eating less nutritious and fresh food and more saturated fats and sugars.

 

 

Those persons suffering from rhinosinusitis has a high tendency to also suffer from depression due to their medical condition.
This was the result of a new study conducted on 73 patients wherein some 9.6 percent of these people suffered depression due to their condition.
The research also showed that 20.5 percent scored in the range of a major depressive disorder using an objective screening instrument with high sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing depression, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9.
Additionally, the disease-specific and general health-related quality of life (QOL) in these patients was worse than those who did not exhibit signs of depression.

 

 

 

 

Patients inflicted with rhinosinusitis better be careful since their medical condition could also result in depression.

 

 

Patients with depression and CRS scored significantly worse in most QOL measures, including bodily pain, and physical and social functioning. The authors believe this casts particular light on the impact of depression on diseases of the head and neck, which is to this point little is understood.
They contend that if physicians are to optimize their patients’ health, screening for both CRS and depression is warranted.

 

 

 

 

A recent medical study has shown that depression, obesity and alcohol abuse or dependency are interrelated conditions among young adult women but not men.
Using data collected when young adults were 24, 27 and 30 years of age, a team of University of Washington researchers found that nearly half the sample of 776 young adults tracked during the study met the criteria for one of these conditions at each of these time points.
Carolyn McCarty, the lead author of a new study and a UW research associate professor of pediatrics and psychology revealed the proportion of people with all three of these conditions at any one point is small.
McCarty said for women there is a great deal of overlap between these common emotional and health problems that span early adulthood.
She explained men may develop one of these conditions but they don’t tend to lead another one later on.
She said these conditions are major public health problems since take toll on families and community and are not subject to quick
fixes.
The lead researcher said it requires a lot of time, money and energy to treat them.

 

 

 

Young women need to be monitored constantly since they are prone to alcohol abuse, depression, and obesity.

 

 

 

Based on the study it was discovered that:

Women with an alcohol disorder at age 24 were more than three times as likely to be obese when they were 27.
Women who are obese at 27 were more than twice as likely to be depressed when they were 30.
Women who are depressed at 27 were at increased risk for alcohol disorders at 30.
Obesity offers men some protection against later developing depression.

 

McCarty said the research did not uncover any step-by-step progression from one these disorders to another.
However, she said clinicians treating women with one of these conditions should be aware that patients might develop another disorder.
McCarty said there are two possibilities as to why women with alcohol disorder at 24 were more likely to be obese at 27.
"The caloric intake associated with drinking alcohol may increase metabolic processes leading to weight gain. Or there may be an underlying connection to levels of dopamine, a neurotransmitter, in the reward pathway in the brain because the same pathways reward both food and alcohol intake. It also may be that some people substitute food for alcohol, leading to obesity."
She said body image may play a key role in why women who are obese at 27 are more likely to report depression three years later.
"Body image is particularly important for women. There seems to be a transfer that when women feel bad they eat more.
That can have devastating effects emotionally and physically. But for men experiencing obesity, the reverse is true, and obesity seems to be protective against depression. It’s the so-called ‘jolly fat man’ theory, which suggests that overweight people are actually happier."
The link between obesity at 27 and subsequent depression at 30 among women may develop as a result of individuals self-medicating themselves.
"People who feel more emotionally down may use alcohol for a quick lift or a short-term boost. The two conditions may be connected by an underlying stress mechanism. Stress is linked to depression, so women under stress potentially eat and drink more," she said.
The study also showed that income has a significant effect on obesity at age 24 and those with higher incomes had a lower risk for weight problem.
McCarty said that finding is not surprising since many of the least nutritional items are inexpensive, and low income areas do not have the same sources of fresh fruits and vegetables that more affluent ones have.
"It costs more to eat well," she said.
McCarty believes that intervention programs are needed and can play a key role in reducing the growing public health burden caused by these conditions.
"Early prevention is important because the sooner we start the more impact we can have.
Interventions should include stress management so we can provide young people with tools to cope with situations and emotions. We also need to explore underlying factors that predispose people to these conditions, such as a family background that is not supportive or is toxic."

 

Cancer patients better avoid getting depressed since doing so could reduce their chances of survival.
A recent medical study has found out that there is a need for systematic screening of psychological distress and subsequent treatments to ensure proper treatment for cancer patients.
To get the data they are looking for, graduate student Jillian Satin, MA, of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, and her colleagues analyzed a total of 9417 patients and examined the effects of depression on patients’ cancer progression and survival.
Based on the study they made they discovered that an increased risk of death in patients who report more depressive symptoms than others and also in patients who have been diagnosed with a depressive disorder compared to patients who have not.
 

 

 

Cancer patients need to avoid getting depressed if they wish to be treated of their medical condition.

 

 

 

Satin revealed in the combined studies, the death rates were up to 25 percent higher in patients xperiencing depressive symptoms and 39 percent higher in patients diagnosed with major or minor depression.
Satin added the increased risks remained even after considering patients’ other clinical characteristics that might affect survival, indicating that depression may actually play a part in shortening survival.
Despite their findings, the researchers admitted additional research needs to be conducted before any conclusions can be reached.
The researchers explained their analysis combined results across different tumor types, so future studies should look at the effects of depression on different kinds of cancer.
Moreover, the researchers noted that the actual risk of death associated with depression in cancer patients is still small, so patients should not feel that they must maintain a positive attitude to beat their disease.
The researchers said their study indicates that it is important for physicians to regularly screen cancer patients for depression and to provide appropriate treatments.

 

 

A recent study has recently uncovered the linked between kidney disease and depression.
Based on the result of the research it was discovered  that 20% of patients with early stage chronic kidney disease (CKD) also suffered from depression.
The research made by Susan Hedayati, MD, at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, has showed that the prevalence of major depressive episodes in chronic kidney disease patients is greater than those reported for patients with other chronic diseases including diabetes (11%), congestive heart failure (14%) and coronary artery disease (16%).
To get the data, the researchers studied 272 patients with CKD in stages two through five who they categorized as depressed or nondepressed based on the presence or absence of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) diagnosis of a current major depressive episode.
One in five patients met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) criteria for a major depressive episode.

 

 

 

 

 

A recent study has shown that kidney disease and depression are linked together.

 

 

Hedayat revealed unemployment, psychiatric illness and diabetes were factors that seemed to contribute to depression in the chronic kidney disease patients they studied.
Moreover, Hedayat said patients with chronic kidney disease should understand that they are at increased risk for depression and ask physicians to monitor them regularly for signs of depression.
She said early screening is especially important since depression is associated with poor outcomes in patients with end stage kidney disease.
She added long term dialysis patients with clinical depression are twice as likely to die or require hospitalization.
 

Researchers warned those persons who are taking depression medicines to be careful since new pieces of evidence have shown that it could affect the fertility of men.
According to the recent research conducted by NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center it was found out that the antidepressant medication paroxetine (trade names Seroxat, Paxil) may have increased sperm DNA fragmentation  a predictor of compromised fertility.
Based on the research made by NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center it was also discovered that the changes are reversible with normal levels of sperm returning after discontinuation of the drug.
The researchers said this medical report should serve as warning to those taking depression medicines to be careful on the dosage of the medicine to avoid chances they will suffer from infertility.
Dr. Peter Schlegel, the study’s senior author revealed the study is considered as one of the first scientific investigations into the effect of antidepressants on sperm quality.

 

 

 

Those male patients taking depression medicines should be careful since the medication could result in infertility.

 

Schlegel added although their study doesn’t look directly at fertility, it can infer that as many as half of men taking SSRIs have a reduced ability to conceive.
He said these men should talk with their physician about their treatment options, including non-SSRI depression medications.
The lead researcher said the study also confirmed the effect of SSRIs on sexual function, with more than a third of study participants reporting significant changes in erectile function and almost half reporting ejaculatory difficulties.
With this finding those people who are regularly using depression medicines should always be careful in taking the drugs to avoid chances of suffering that their fertility will be affected.

 

A recent study has shown that the feelings of depression could be one reason patients fail to follow their doctors’ orders on exercising and eventually become less physically active.
It is said that although past research shows that exercise improves chronic health conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes, it also shows that patients with these conditions often suffer from depression.
To get the result, the researchers evaluated 11 studies comprising some 20,000 patients.
Based on eight studies reported that having symptoms of depression after a coronary event, such as heart attack, was a significant risk factor for developing a sedentary lifestyle or a poor adherence to an exercise regimen recommended by the patients’ doctor.

 

 

Those patients who are less active could be suffering from depression.

 

Babak Roshanaei-Moghaddam, M.D. of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at University of Washington in Seattle and lead author of the study explained there are both behavioral habits associated with depression, such as smoking and obesity, which may then limit exercise motivation and enjoyment, as well as biologic factors that can cause obesity and decrease energy level, exercise tolerance and pain threshold.
Evette Joy Ludman, Ph.D., of Seattle-based Group Health Cooperative, who had no affiliation with the study, for her part said depression can indeed make people have less motivation and energy to exercise.
Ludman added the physical activity is not only important for preventing and managing many chronic conditions; it can be very helpful for improving mood and other symptoms of depression.

 

 

 

Here is a piece of advice to parents to keep their child away from depression from preschool.
This developed after a recent study has shown that depression in preschool could last until childhood.
According to the study, depression among preschoolers appears to be a continuous, chronic condition rather than a transient developmental stage.
The researchers revealed the validity of major depressive disorder in childhood has been well established, with the disorder now widely recognized and treated in mental health settings.
Joan L. Luby, M.D., and colleagues at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis studied 306 preschoolers age 3 to 6. Of these, 75 met criteria for major depressive disorder, 79 had anxiety or disruptive disorders but not depression and 146 did not meet criteria for any psychiatric disorder.
It is said that a comprehensive three- to four-hour laboratory assessment was completed at the beginning of the study.
While children completed measures of emotional, cognitive and social development, primary caregivers were interviewed separately about the preschoolers’ psychiatric symptoms and developmental skills.
Similar developmental and behavioral assessments were conducted 12 and 24 months later.

 

 

 

Parents should do their best to help their children cope up with depression in preschool, so that their medical condition could not last until childhood.

 

The researchers explained preschoolers with depression at baseline had the highest likelihood of subsequent depression 12 and/or 24 months later compared with preschoolers with no baseline disorder and with those who had other psychiatric disorders.
After controlling for other demographic variables and risk factors, preschoolers with depression at the beginning of the study had a four times greater likelihood of having depression one and two years later than preschoolers without depression.
The condition also showed a chronic and recurrent course among preschoolers-in a subset of 119 preschoolers with depression or depressive symptoms who were screened by phone at six and 18 months, 57 percent of those with depression had an episode during at least two follow-up points during study and 18 percent followed a chronic course, defined as having an episode in at least four waves of the study.
Furthermore, the researchers said these results underscore the clinical and public health importance of identification of depression as early as preschool.
The researchers explained early intervention during the preschool period has proved effective in other childhood disorders.
The researchers added the study findings that demonstrate longitudinal stability and homotypic continuity of preschool major depressive disorder suggest that earlier interventions for major depressive disorder during the preschool period may be an important area for investigation in the search for more effective treatments for childhood major depressive disorder.

 

 

According to a recent study, babies born to women suffering from depression are more likely to suffer sleeping problems.
Based on the research conducted by medical experts it was discovered that babies are more likely to have night walking at both 6 months and 12 months of age if they are born to women who suffered from anxiety or depression prior to the pregnancy.
The researchers said the result of the study indicate that preconceptional psychological distress - anxiety or depression - was a strong predictor of infant night waking, independent of the effects of postnatal depression, bedroom sharing and other confounding factors.
The team also found out that significant psychological distress prior to conception was associated with a 23-percent increased risk of infant night walking at 6 months of age and a  22-percent increased risk at 12 months of age.
The researchers revealed, frequent, disruptive night walking in the latter period of the first year of life are clinically relevant because they predict sleep problems at three years of age, which in turn are associated with behavioral problems.
They said during early childhood development, poor sleep quality also may affect learning abilities.
It was also discovered that infant night walking also disrupt a mother’s sleep, which predicts maternal mood, stress and fatigue.
The researchers gathered the data from 874 women between 20 and 34 years of age in the city of Southampton, U.K wherein before becoming pregnant the women completed the General Health Questionnaire, a 12-question screening instrument that detects depression and anxiety disorders.

 

 

 

Pregnant women need to avoid depression to avoid chances that their babies would suffer from sleeping problems.
 

 

Twenty-nine percent of the women were classified as having significant psychological distress.
When their baby was 6 months and 12 months of age, the women reported how often, their child had awakened on average between the hours of midnight and 6 a.m. each night during the last two weeks. The percentage of children who woke at least once each night was higher among women with psychological distress prior to the pregnancy, both at 6 months of age (52 percent vs. 43 percent) and 12 months of age (46 percent vs. 36 percent).
Furthermore, the researchers said untreated infant sleep problems could become chronic, with implications for the mental health and well-being of both the child and the mother.
The researchers added the difficulties of mothers who are already vulnerable to anxiety and depression will be exacerbated if they also are deprived of sleep.
The team believe recognizing and treating psychological distress before, during and after pregnancy may promote improved infant sleep.

 

 

To those people who are easily get depressed it is time to cheer up and avoid sadness and sorrow.
This developed after a recent study by researchers revealed that those people suffering from depression have strong tendencies to also be inflicted with the deadly Alzheimer’s disease.
Alzheimer’s disease, which is named after the German physician Alois Alzheimer who first described it in 1906, is the most common form of dementia, accounting for 50 to 70 per cent of cases.
It is a progressive and fatal brain disease with no cure and the 7th leading cause of death in the US.
Alzheimer’s destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking and behavior that impair ability to work, relate to others, enjoy hobbies and get on with every day life.
The National Institute on Aging reports that according to recent estimates, as many as 2.4 to 4.5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s.
The astounding medical discovery was made possible through the study conducted by Dr. Po H Lu, assistant professor of neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), and colleagues.

 

 

It is time to cheer up for depressed persons to avoid strong chances of suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

 

 

In order to gather the data, Lu and his team closely monitored 756 people between 55 and 91 years of age who had Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), a form of depression for three years.
According to the information gathered by the researchers it was discovered that participant’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s went up by 3 per cent for each point increase on the depression test.
With the result of their research, Lu and his team came to the conclusion that the results suggest that depression is predictive of progression from amnesic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) to Alzheimer disease (AD).