Why Is Depression on the Rise?

One in five adults will be diagnosed with a mental illness, according to a 1999 U.S. Surgeon General's mental health report. Baby boomers appear to be more at risk for depression than previous generations, and more children and adults are being diagnosed and treated for depression than ever. There also has been a big rise in antidepressant use.

Reasons for the Rise

• Whether depression truly is on the rise or whether it is simply more often documented isn't clear. What is certain is that a higher percentage of people have been diagnosed in recent years than in the past.

  Historians have noted that eras associated with war, terrorist attacks, depression, recession and famines usually have higher rates of depression. The latest recession, perhaps the worst since 1982-83, has been blamed for greater amounts of ennui and depression. But psychiatrists, therapists and watchdog groups don't necessarily agree on why depression diagnoses and antidepressant use are climbing.

New Drugs

• There are more medicines available to treat depression than ever before. Sales of many new drugs, especially selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors such as Paxil, Prozac, Luvox, Zoloft and Celexa, have skyrocketed since Prozac hit the market in 1987.

  About three years ago, 27 million Americans were using antidepressants, which was double the amount from the previous decade. Most experts foresee the drugs' continued popularity.

Media Attention

• The popularity of self-help books and talk shows such as "Dr. Phil" may be one reason that depression is diagnosed more frequently. Americans openly share their battles with depression on TV, in Internet chat rooms and with their friends and families. Media coverage of those with depression has prompted others to visit therapists and join support groups. The stigma once attached to mental illness appears to be vanishing.

  More health insurance companies also are including mental health treatment in their policies, making getting assistance much easier.

Brain Research

• Thanks to modern imaging tools such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), doctors are able to better observe brain activity and study how it is affected by different medicines. In theory, this helps them focus treatments, so a patient suffering from depression can take medicine specifically addressing affected areas of the brain.

  While experts continue to debate how the body's chemicals and genetics affect the brain, studies do show that children of depressed parents are up to three times more likely to suffer from the illness.

  Some researchers contend that the depressed brain has been aroused by cortisol, a stress hormone stimulated by anxiety. One theory is that people who dream most often tend to be depressed because they have less restorative sleep time. In addition, other research has suggested that untreated depression can be linked to a host of other illnesses, including cancer, dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

Treatment

• Whatever causes depression, most researchers agree that the best treatment is both medication and psychotherapy. While drugs such as the SSRIs have proven effective, studies show that counseling sessions with a licensed professional are even more so in preventing depression from recurring.