Women Likely to be More Depressed Than Men
Friday, 16 September 2011, 18:21 IST
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London: Women are twice more likely to suffer from depression these days than they were 40 years ago, says a new study. According to the study, published in the latest edition of the 'European Neuropsychopharmacology' journal, as many as one in seven will be affected by depression at some point in their lives - more than double the number of men. Moreover, women are twice as likely to be prescribed antidepressants as men, says the study by German researchers led by Prof Hans-Ulrich Wittchen. He blames one factor - modern life, and says the pressure of trying to cope with having a family and pursuing a career is leaving women with a "tremendous burden", the 'Daily Mail' reported. Meanwhile, modern-day men are suffering unprecedented job losses, their role as the head of the family is disappearing and their lives are also getting more hectic and harried. But men's depression rates have not climbed nearly so high. In fact, one of the main reasons behind this astonishing rise in antidepressant use is that women are increasingly being parked on these powerful and potentially dangerous drugs for want of anything else to help them with the emotional distress that led them to visit their doctor. This was echoed in a poll of 2,000 women released in June by the women’s campaign group.
Source: PTI
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