Aging: Mild Depression and Eroding
Immunity
By: Eric Nagourney
New York Times, February 12, 2002
Scientists have long known that there is a link
between serious depression and the ability to ward off diseases.
But a new study suggests that even mild depression
can weaken the immune system in older people if it goes on long enough.
Writing in the current Journal of Abnormal
Psychology, researchers from Ohio State University said that among people
they had monitored for 18 months, those who reported symptoms of
depression had measurably lower immune responses, as determined through
blood samples.
The symptoms probably need to occur over a long
period to affect the immune system, said the lead author, Dr. Lynanne
McGuire, now of the Johns Hopkins medical school.
"It wasn't someone having a bad week or a bad
day," Dr. McGuire said.
In this case, many of the people studied were under
considerable stress, since they were the spouses of dementia patients
taking part in a broader study.
In all, the researchers examined 78 adults, with an
average age of about 72. Of these, 22 were judged to be mildly to
moderately depressed after taking a standardized questionnaire about their
emotional well-being.
The immune system generally declines as people age,
leaving them more vulnerable to disease and less equipped to recover
quickly. So anything that accelerates that deterioration is of concern,
the researchers said.
Moreover, they found, the older the person, the worse
the effect even mild depression seemed to have.
Still, the study does not mean that mildly depressed
elderly people necessarily need to be taking antidepressants, Dr. McGuire
said. She said they might well benefit from simple therapy, or even just
someone making sure they were getting enough physical activity
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