SEATTLE - Older adults can learn to beat back depression through problem solving, exercise and social activity, according to a Seattle study published in Wednesday's Journal of the American Medical Association.

After one year, study participants were much more likely than others to halve their symptoms of depression, such as feelings of hopelessness, poor appetite and difficulty falling asleep.

Their health status and emotional well-being improved and they tended to be hospitalized less, the study said. Many participants managed to shed their depression completely.

"It was a lifesaver for me," says Chuck Lazenby, 72, of Seattle, who slipped into despair after his partner of 50 years died of a heart attack.

Late-life depression affects 15 percent to 20 percent of older Americans, said Dr. Paul Ciechanowski, a co-investigator and psychiatrist on the study, called Program to Encourage Active Rewarding Lives for Seniors, or PEARLS.

Only about half of depressed older adults receive treatment, though many don't receive adequate treatment, Ciechanowski said.

The study was conducted by the University of Washington's Health Promotion Research Center, which is leading a national research effort on healthy aging for the Atlanta-based federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which paid for the study.

Driving a national search for solutions are the prevalence of the disorder, the health care costs and the large numbers of aging baby boomers.

The goal is to create programs that can be demonstrated to improve the health of older adults at low cost in communities nationwide.

The study cost $630 a year for each participant, which included eight in-home sessions with a social worker and monthly follow-up phone calls.

"This is an attempt to reach the most vulnerable population in our society," said Dr. Jim LoGerfo, the UW center's director.

Efforts are underway to make the program available to more seniors throughout the state, in senior centers as well as in homes.

The UW study extends the 2002 findings of a large national study. Seattle was one of seven cities in that study, which found that depressed patients at clinics improved through problem-solving therapy, increased social activity and medication management.

The UW study extended that approach into the community and people's homes. It also relied on partner agencies in the community: Aging and Disability Services - a city of Seattle division - and Senior Services.

An editorial in the journal said depression studies such as the UW's "provide evidence-based hope for millions of elderly persons living in the dark tunnel of major depression or the only slightly less dim tunnels of 'lesser' depressions."

Triggers often are life's losses, such as careers ending, family and friends dying, the body weakening, and independence ebbing. Seniors with chronic conditions or physical limitations often stay inside and can feel isolated and unneeded.

During the 2 1/2-year study, social workers from Aging and Disability Services visited the homes of 138 low-income seniors, age 60 and older, most of whom were single and had serious disabilities.

The social workers focused on a therapy that emphasized exercise and more socializing. The participants learned to identify what was bothering them and to write down step-by-step solutions.

"It's like breaking the bundle one stick at a time," Ciechanowski says.

Social workers followed up with visits and phone calls to keep patients on track. But patients were expected to solve their own problems, which helped them regain a sense of control over their lives.