In the ongoing search to understand the causes of depression a US study has reported some interesting findings.
After studying data over a number of years from a 1400 children they found a significant link between birth weight and depression.
Their findings showed that girls who were underweight at birth (in this case weighing less than 2.5kg) were at a much higher risk of developing depression in later life. The statistics were quite startling: Underweight baby girls were more than four times as likely to suffer from depression. It should be stressed that the study failed to find a link between the birth weight of boys and depression in later life.
In previous studies it has been mooted that depression, or its causes, may lie dormant from birth and become awakened later in life under stressful or emotionally painful circumstances.
Interestingly, no evidence was found to suggest that low birth weight is linked to mental health issues such as anxiety disorder, eating disorders or panic disorder.
When statistical studies such as this find a strong correlation it is common to assume there is a straightforward cause and effect relationship. This is wrong. It may be that a low birth weight leads to depression but there are other possibilities. It is possible, for example, that extreme poverty main be a cause of both low birth weight and indicative of an environment in which depression is more likely to develop. Or perhaps a sign that the mother is unable or incapable of nourishing herself properly, likewise a potential cause, if eating habits are passed from mother to child, of depression in later life.
Whatever the cause is (and there are so many possibilities that we may well never know exactly what causes a specific instance of depression) it is important that anyone in an “at risk” group of developing depression has a good support network available and knows how to recognise symptoms and seek help.
