Are your genes making you depressed?
According to research, specific gene variants in certain individuals increases the risk of developing mental distress
It’s a sombre thought, but it seems that some of us are born more likely to be depressed. A University of Central Florida study found that a gene variant, thought to be carried by nearly 25 percent of the population, increases the odds of getting the blues.
People with apolipoprotein-E4, called ApoE4 for short, have a 20 percent greater chance of developing clinically significant depressive symptoms later in life compared to those who don’t have the gene variant, said lead author Rosanna Scott. “Some genes are deterministic, like the one that causes Huntington’s disease – where if you’ve got it, you’ll get the disease. This isn’t one of those genes,” said co-author Daniel Paulson.
Her thesis addressed a critical gap in the theoretical framework of this area of study, Paulson said. “Bottom line, you do statistically have a higher risk of developing depression if you have ApoE4, but it’s not deterministic. You can’t change your genes, but you do have some control over improving your health,” she said. “That should be encouraging.”