Depression doesn’t affect everyone in the same way — and now scientists say it may influence physical health differently, too.
In a seven-year study of nearly 6,000 adults, researchers found that certain types of depression are linked to specific diseases.
New Insights Into Depression and Physical Health
Scientists have long recognized that depression can raise the risk of metabolic disorders. Recent findings now show that different forms of depression are tied to different cardiometabolic diseases. These results were presented at the ECNP Congress in Amsterdam.
Researchers followed 5,794 adults taking part in the Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity (NEO) Study. None of the participants had diabetes or cardiovascular disease when the project began. Each person completed an extensive questionnaire that evaluated symptoms of depression.
Based on these responses, the team identified two main depression profiles: one marked by “melancholic” features (such as early morning awakening and reduced appetite), and another characterized by “atypical/energy-related” features (such as fatigue, increased sleep, and increased appetite).
Different Depression Types Predict Different Disease Risks
During the follow-up period, about 8% of the participants developed a cardiometabolic condition. The type of disease that appeared varied with the form of depression they experienced. People with “atypical/energy-related” symptoms were approximately 2.7 times more likely to develop Type-2 diabetes than those without depressive symptoms. This group did not show a meaningful rise in cardiovascular disease
