Mental Health Research and Treatment Center, Department of Psychology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
Clin Psychol Psychother. 2018 May;25(3):378-387. doi: 10.1002/cpp.2171. Epub 2018 Jan 8.
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of global disease burden. Hence, examining the role of risk and protective factors for MDD is an important target in psychological research. Various studies showed that obesity, smoking, and alcohol consumption are related to depressive symptoms. In contrast, physical activity has been found to be a protective factor. The present population-based study tested whether these health-related factors are prospectively associated with incidence of MDD. Data were taken from the Dresden Predictor Study, which was designed to investigate risk and protective factors of mental health in young women. It included two assessments approximately 17 months apart. Results of single logistic regression analyses showed that being overweight, being a smoker, and being in a high-risk drinking group at baseline were predictive of developing MDD at follow-up. Engaging in regular physical activity and having good physical health were found to be protective factors of MDD. However, being in a medium-risk drinking group was not predictive of incidence of MDD, and irregular physical activity was not a protective factor. This is the first prospective, longitudinal study to show that obesity, smoking, and high-risk drinking are predictive of new onsets of MDD and that physical health is a protective factor. These data provide promising avenues for future research.
重度抑郁症（MDD）是全球疾病负担的主要原因。因此，研究 MDD 的风险和保护因素是心理研究的一个重要目标。多项研究表明，肥胖、吸烟和饮酒与抑郁症状有关。相比之下，身体活动被认为是一种保护因素。本项基于人群的研究旨在检验这些与健康相关的因素是否与 MDD 的发病具有前瞻性关联。数据来自德累斯顿预测研究，该研究旨在调查年轻女性心理健康的风险和保护因素。它包括两次大约相隔 17 个月的评估。单因素逻辑回归分析的结果表明，基线时超重、吸烟和处于高风险饮酒组是随访时发生 MDD 的预测因素。定期进行身体活动和身体健康被认为是 MDD 的保护因素。然而，处于中风险饮酒组并不预示 MDD 的发病，不规律的身体活动也不是保护因素。这是第一项前瞻性、纵向研究，表明肥胖、吸烟和高风险饮酒可预测 MDD 的新发病例，而身体健康是保护因素。这些数据为未来的研究提供了有希望的途径。
