Issue 147 Item 2 Depression, A Precursor for Diabetes

A recently published article suggested that people suffering from depression could have a higher likelihood of contracting diabetes. A diagnosis of diabetes can be depressing for a person. Now, some doctors wonder if the reverse is true: In other words, can depression cause diabetes?

A team of doctors at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found after a series of several studies that treating depression may help curb the rising nationwide epidemic of diabetes, as reported in a story on the Mental Help Net Web site recently.

The doctors in the study claimed that depression has been linked to excess glucose in the blood, which in turn promotes obesity and Type II adult-onset diabetes. After diabetic patients in the study were treated for depression, it was reported that their glucose levels became better controlled.

Janis Brown, certified diabetes educator for the Diabetes Center in the Heartland Medical Plaza, said she doesn’t believe depression causes the disease. It instead might be more of a symptom of the disease, she said.

“There is a higher incidence of depression in any chronic disease,” she said. “I don’t think depression causes physical problems. I think problems come from not taking care of the symptoms.”

Mrs. Brown explained that people could become more depressed as a result of not keeping glucose levels under control. Lack of sleep and sluggishness due to high sugar levels may promote depression in many individuals.

“If they are depressed, maybe they are not eating healthy or taking their medicine,” she said.

Zafar Mahmood, psychiatrist for the Family Guidance Center for Behavioral Healthcare, said depression has a direct link to a number of physical ailments, such as heart disease.

“There is a very clear link between cardiovascular diseases and depression, meaning that it has been shown that people have a very high incidence after depression, especially after a heart attack,” he said. “But I don’t know whether depression causes diabetes. I’m not aware of any link between them.”

However, Dr. Mahmood said there are ways that depression could contribute to diabetes. For instance, a symptom of depression for some is overeating, which can contribute to diabetes.

“That might predispose people to diabetes,” he said. “But I’ve seen diabetes in lots of people who have never been depressed in their lives.”

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FACT: It was recently estimated that up to 26 million additional adults have prediabetes or impaired glucose tolerance. CDC