What is the effect of spirituality on depression?
A study published in the January issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry looks at the effects of religion and spirituality on depression. The study, which included more than 100 adult participants, has determined that having strong religious or spiritual beliefs may help prevent the recurrence of depression.
In this long-term longitudinal study, participants who said they had little to no religious or spiritual beliefs were more likely to experience major depression within the next 10 years, compared to those who reported that religion and spirituality was important in their lives.
Participants who had a depressed parent were also examined, and those who claimed religion was of high importance only had approximately 1/10 the risk of having depression, compared to those who did not hold religion in high esteem.
“We’re beginning to realize that all kinds of mentalization can have an effect on long-term health outcomes,” said principal investigator Myrna M. Weissman, PhD, professor of epidemiology at Columbia University and chief of the Division of Epidemiology at New York State Psychiatric Institute.
Weissman also noted that there are more studies being done on the effects of yoga, meditation, beliefs, and psychotherapy, including those using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and electroencephalogram (EEG).
“There is an increasing interest in people’s feelings and attitudes and how they affect the brain. So in this study, we wanted to examine how it affected clinical course,” she said.
Source—Medscape
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