Study Shows Link between Depression and Dementia

Research conducted by the University of Massachusetts Medical School has shown a definitive link between depression and dementia/Alzheimer's risk.  Results of the study are being published in the journal Neurology.

Study Details

Lead author Jane Saczynski, associate professor of medicine, led team that followed a group of 1,000 participants for up to 17 years to determine an association between the two disorders.  Those chosen for the study were already a part of the Framingham Heart Study, which began in 1948 as a way to determine heart disease risk factors in residents of Framingham, Massachusetts.  This is significant because obtaining participants already involved in another study allowed Saczynski to control for other various risk factors, such as heart attack, stroke, smoking, and alcohol use.

Upon conculsion of the study, Saczynski determined that depression doubles a person's risk for dementia and also substantially increases risk for Alzheimer's disease, which is a particular form of dementia.

Interpreting the Data

Further research will need to be conducted to determine whether or not the link between depression and Alzheimer's is associative or causal.  Saczynski points out that exercise and social engagement tend to reduce the risk for Alzheimer's and depression, so the association may be due to chemical reactions in the brain that may be similar to one another(CNN) .

The bottom line is that people who are suffering from depression should be treated for it, and older people who are depressed should be tested for possible neurological problems.

Other Risk Factors

According to the Alzheimer's Association, living a balanced life by exercising both body and mind seem to significantly reduce the risk of developing the disease.  It has also been established that serious head injury raises risk of Alzheimer's later in life.