Multiple moves during childhood can increase the risks of depression in later life, researchers say. — AFP
ALTHOUGH the causes of mental health disorders are complex to pinpoint, growing up in a stable, unchanged social environment may weigh in the balance, according to one study.
The research suggests that children who move little or not at all may have a lower risk of depression in adulthood.
Recent research, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, reveals that frequent moves during childhood are associated with significantly higher rates of depression in adulthood.
This finding highlights the importance of the social environments in which children grow up, and their impact on long-term mental health.
The researchers in Denmark and Britain who worked on this study analysed data from around 1.1 million people born between 1982 and 2003, who had resided in Denmark for at least 15 years. Of these individuals, 35,098 were diagnosed with depression, with a higher prevalence among women (67.6%).
Following this sample into adulthood, the researchers found that children who had moved once between the ages of 10 and 15 were 41% more likely to be diagnosed with depression than those who had not moved. This risk rises to 61% for those who moved two or more times during these five years.
Multiple moves at this age were found to have a greater impact on mental health “than growing up in a deprived neighborhood,” the researchers explain in a news release.
“We know there are a number of factors which lead to a person being diagnosed with a mental illness. However, this is the first evidence to suggest that moving to a new neighborhood during childhood is among them, and we believe the numbers we are seeing could be the tip of the iceberg. During those formative years, children are building their social networks through school, sports groups or other activities. Each time they have to adapt to something new it can be disruptive, so we potentially need to find new ways to help people overcome those challenges,” says the study’s lead author, Clive Sabel, professor of big data and spatial science at the University of Plymouth. – AFP Relaxnews
