Sep 13, 2020 22:00:00

'Trusting friends and family' may reduce the risk of depression

Depression is a

disease that affects hundreds of millions of people around the world, but there are still many unknowns. A new study investigating more than 100 potential factors that may be associated with depression based on data from more than 100,000 people says, 'Trusting friends may reduce your risk of depression. There is. '

An Exposure-Wide and Mendelian Randomization Approach to Identifying Modifiable Factors for the Prevention of Depression | American Journal of Psychiatry
https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.19111158

Study identifies social connection as the strongest protective factor for depression | EurekAlert! Science News
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-08/mgh-sis081420.php

Large Study on Depression Reveals The'Protective Effect' of Confiding in a Friend
https://www.sciencealert.com/large-study-on-depression-reveals-why-you-should-get-off-the-couch-and-go-see-a-friend

'Depression is a major cause of disability worldwide, but researchers to date have only a handful of factors, primarily,' said Karmel Choi , the lead author of the paper and a researcher at Harvard School of Public Health. We have focused on only one or two factors. ' The purpose of this study was to provide a more comprehensive analysis of the factors that influence the risk of depression.

So the research team decided to investigate the causes of depression in a two-step approach. First, the research team uses a database of more than 100,000 people included in UK Biobank to determine 106 factors such as social interaction, media use, sleep habits, diet, physical activity, and environmental factors. Was extracted and scanned to comprehensively compare risk factors for depression.

Next, he applied a method called Mendelian randomization to this result and investigated which risk factors have a causal relationship with depression. Mendel randomization is a statistical method of determining whether things are causally related and is used primarily in the field of genetics.

The research team has previously analyzed the association between physical activity and the risk of depression with Mendel randomization. It has long been known that people with depression tend to have less physical activity, but this is not 'less exercise makes them more susceptible to depression', but simply 'depression reduces physical activity'. There was also the possibility of just suggesting that it would cause. Therefore, the research team conducted an analysis using Mendelian randomization and reported that the results supported the causal relationship that 'less exercise makes people more susceptible to depression.'

In the first phase of this study, many factors, such as sleep habits and eating habits, were found to correlate with the risk of depression. Further analysis of this result by Mendel randomization showed support for the causal relationship that 'trusting and interacting frequently with friends and family' reduces the risk of depression. The research team reports that trust in others and the protective effect of social interaction from depression were also seen in individuals with factors that increase the risk of depression, such as genetic factors and childhood trauma. ..

'The most prominent of these factors was trust in others, including visiting family and friends, all of which showed a protective effect on depression through social ties and cohesion. This is more important than ever now, with social distance and distance from friends and family, 'commented research team Jordan Smoller .

The study also showed that watching TV and taking a nap may increase the risk of depression. However, the research team believes that further research is needed on how these relate to the risk of depression. For example, the longer you watch TV, the longer you sit, which can result in less physical activity and an increased risk of depression. In addition, naps may be the result of increased daytime sleepiness due to depression, and a complex feedback loop may be involved.

'We have shown that we are now able to address important public health issues using a large database approach that was not possible until a few years ago,' Smoller said. We hope that it will motivate further efforts to develop practical strategies for preventing depression. '