(Washington Insider Magazine) —Not smoking and leading a healthy life based on moderate alcohol consumption, a healthy diet, regular physical activity, restful sleep and frequent social relationships can prevent depression, according to a study published this Monday in Nature Mental Health.
According to data from the World Health Organization, one in 20 adults suffers from depression , which represents a significant burden on public health around the world.
The study, led by scientists from the University of Cambridge (United Kingdom) and Fudan (China), has analyzed the relationship between lifestyle, genetics, brain structure, the immune and metabolic systems and depression.
To do this, they have used information from the United Kingdom Biobank, an immense genetic database of half a million people between 40 and 69 years old with free access for scientific research.
Study of almost a decade
After examining data from nearly 290,000 people – 13,000 with depression – over nine years, they identified seven healthy lifestyle factors linked to a lower risk of depression :
1.- Moderate alcohol consumption
2.- Healthy diet
3.- Regular physical activity
4.- Healthy sleep
5.- Never smoke
6.- Low to moderate sedentary lifestyle
7.- Frequent social relationships
Of all of them, sleeping well – between seven and nine hours a day – was the most important factor : it reduces the risk of depression by 22%, followed by never smoking (20%) and frequent social relationships (18%). , which are the ones that most protect against recurrent depressive disorder.
In addition, regular physical activity reduces the risk of depression by 14%, low or moderate sedentary lifestyle by 13%, moderate alcohol consumption by 11% and a healthy diet by 6%.
Depending on the number of healthy lifestyle factors that an individual met, the team assigned them to one of three groups: unfavorable, intermediate and favorable lifestyle.
Those in the intermediate group were about 41% less likely to develop depression than those in the unfavorable lifestyle group, and those in the favorable lifestyle group were 57% less likely.
Other risk factors
The team also examined the participants’ DNA and found that people with the lowest genetic risk score were 25% less likely to develop depression than those with the highest score.
However, the study highlights the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle to prevent depression, regardless of genetic risk.
To understand why a healthy lifestyle can reduce the risk of depression, the team studied other factors.
They first examined brain MRIs of nearly 33,000 participants and discovered a number of brain regions in which greater volume – more neurons and connections – was linked to a healthy lifestyle.
They then looked for markers in the blood that indicated problems with the immune system or metabolism, such as C-reactive protein, a molecule produced by the body in response to stress, and triglycerides, one of the main forms of fat the body uses. to store energy.
This article is originally published on eldiariony.com
