Depression
Depression
What is depression ?
Depression (major depressive disorder) is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. Fortunately, it is also treatable. Depression causes feelings of sadness and/or a loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed. It can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems and can decrease your ability to function at work and at home.
What Are the Main Causes of Depression?
Lots of things can increase the chance of depression, including the following:
- Abuse. Physical, sexual, or emotional abuse can make you more vulnerable to depression later in life.
- Age. People who are elderly are at higher risk of depression. That can be made worse by other factors, such as living alone and having a lack of social support.
- Certain medications. Some drugs, such as isotretinoin (used to treat acne), the antiviral drug interferon-alpha, and corticosteroids, can increase your risk of depression.
- Conflict. Depression in someone who has the biological vulnerability to it may result from personal conflicts or disputes with family members or friends.
- Death or a loss. Sadness or grief after the death or loss of a loved one, though natural, can increase the risk of depression.
- Gender. Women are about twice as likely as men to become depressed. No one's sure why. The hormonal changes that women go through at different times of their lives may play a role.
What is ratio of depression?
- An estimated 3.8% of the population experience depression, including 5% of adults (4% among men and 6% among women), and 5.7% of adults older than 60 years. Approximately 280 million people in the world have depression (1). Depression is about 50% more common among women than among men.
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