Depression with diabetes ups death risk in women

"People with both conditions are at very high risk of death," said lead researcher Dr. Frank B. Hu, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. "Those are double whammies."

Earlier studies have revealed that depression is particularly common in diabetes patients.

"People with diabetes are more likely to be depressed, because they are under long-term psychosocial stress, which is associated with diabetes complications." Hu said.

"It is possible that these two conditions not only influence each other biologically, but also behaviorally," he added.

While the reason behind this is yet not clear, researchers are of the view that the development of poor eating habits during depression and various complications resulting out of diabetes are the main causes leading to the increased mortality rate.

78,282 women analyzed
The study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, looked at 78,282 women aged between 54 and 79 years who were a part of the Nurses' Health Study conducted in the year 2000.

While questionnaires were used to confirm the diabetic condition of the participants, a depression index-scoring tool was used to assess their depression state. The researchers tracked them for a period of 6 years.

By the end of the study, 4,654 women participants died, Of the total, 979 deaths occurred due to heart dysfunctions.

Participants with diabetes experienced a 35 percent higher risk of dying as compared to participants with neither of the two ailments. Those suffering from depression faced a 44 percent increased risk.

Surprisingly, women with both the conditions faced almost twice the risk of dying.

Further, diabetes patients revealed a 67 percent increased risk of dying due to cardiovascular diseases and the women with depression were at a 37 percent increased risk of death due to heart disorders.

Potential factors
While the reason behind this is yet not clear, researchers are of the view that the development of poor eating habits during depression and various complications resulting out of diabetes are the main causes leading to the increased mortality rate.

Other unhealthy factors include poor eating, smoking and lack of exercise, the researchers claim.

"Considering the size of the population that could be affected by these two prevalent disorders, further consideration is required to design strategies aimed to provide adequate psychological management and support among those with longstanding chronic conditions, such as diabetes," the authors conclude.

The report is published in the January issue of the 'Archives of General Psychiatry.'