Depression affects one in five people each year.
Depression and anxiety speed up brain aging.
People who are depressed experience greater memory loss, decreased processing speed and more problems with decision-making as they age.
However, getting the right treatment for depression may help slow the process down, the study’s authors suggest.
Recommended treatments include learning the basics of cognitive behavioural therapy, practising mindfulness and exercising.
Dr Darya Gaysina, study co-author, said:
“This study is of great importance — our populations are ageing at a rapid rate and the number of people living with decreasing cognitive abilities and dementia is expected to grow substantially over the next thirty years.
Our findings should give the government even more reason to take mental health issues seriously and to ensure that health provisions are properly resourced.
We need to protect the mental wellbeing of our older adults and to provide robust support services to those experiencing depression and anxiety in order to safeguard brain function in later life.”
The study’s authors analysed 34 separate studies including over 71,000 people.
Depression and anxiety were both linked to greater cognitive decline and, possibly, dementia.
Ms Amber John, who co-authored the study, said:
“Depression is a common mental health problem — each year, at least 1 in 5 people in the UK experience symptoms.
But people living with depression shouldn’t despair — it’s not inevitable that you will see a greater decline in cognitive abilities and taking preventative measures such as exercising, practicing mindfulness and undertaking recommended therapeutic treatments, such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, have all been shown to be helpful in supporting wellbeing, which in turn may help to protect cognitive health in older age.”
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The study was published in the journal Psychological Medicine (John et al., 2018).
