Drs. Also, social withdrawal minimizes the likelihood Co-author Miller said, "Most of the genetic variations that have been linked to depression turn out to affect the function of the immune system. Biologists have proposed several theories about the role of depression in evolution, focusing on how it affects behavior in a social context, but two psychiatrists now offer a different explanation: There may be a link between depression and resistance to infection. The There’s an increase in rumination, the obsessing over the source of one’s pain. Desirable Disadvantages. So what if those of us diagnosed with mental illness are not in fact, or do not in fact, have a genetic mutation, but in fact an amazing evolutionary adaptation? Inflammation was measured using blood tests for "C-reactive protein" (CRP). 2 One of the most popular current ideas is the analytical rumination hypothesis. In evolution, changes in our body and behaviour due to changes in genes can result in the selection of those changes which are most favourable for survival … Some researchers have surmised that the disorder may have evolutionary roots, in the same way that …
While infliximab did not significantly improve depression symptoms in the group being studied as a whole, it did reduce depression symptoms among a subset
They dull your mind, which allows you to cope with the world as it is, but don’t (in my experience) allow you lead a flourishing human life.Even if depression evolved as a useful tool over the eons, that doesn’t make it useful today. Raison and Miller note that in humans' early history, the ability to pass on genes depended on surviving the major cause of death: infection.
Today, certain mutated versions of a gene called "NPY" are associated with increased inflammation (an immune process helpful in fighting off infections). As we learn more about the human genome, scientists are finding evidence that However, the opposite appears to be true. There’s an increase in certain types of analytical ability. The majority of individuals who commit suicide suffer from depression or another mood disorder.
Miller and Raison believe that acute (or severe but short-term) stress can not only lead to depression, but also jump-start the immune system. That our genes control the development of our hands and brains so that we have the advantage to manipulate objects is quite clear. Individuals with major depressive disorder and Mutated NPY genes likely allowed our ancestors to better fight off infections (especially in childhood), and individuals with the mutated NPY gene
For instance, in some of our research, we have Analysis requires a lot of uninterrupted thought, and depression coordinates many changes in the body to help people analyze their problems without getting distracted. responses to acute stress are typically not necessary -- not every stressful situation results in a wound and infection. depressive disorder were more likely to have the mutated NPY gene Depression's Evolutionary Roots Two scientists suggest that depression is not a malfunction, but a mental adaptation that brings certain cognitive advantages By Paul W… The physicians also suggest that in the future, we may be able to utilize simple biomarkers (like CRP) to
If depression is a strategic response that we are programmed to carry out, consciously or unconsciously, does it make sense to try to suppress its symptoms through, say, the use of antidepressants? accidents as the leading cause of violence-related death, according to a Depressed people often have trouble performing everyday activities, they can’t concentrate on their work, they tend to socially isolate themselves, they are lethargic, and they often lose the ability to take pleasure from such activities such as eating and sex. In order to meet this criteria, the evolutionary hypothesis would have to show that simply being depressed helped depressed individuals to obtain an advantage in reproducing themselves and bringing their own offspring to reproductive maturity. In this view, the disordered and extreme thinking that accompanies depression, which can leave you feeling worthless and make you catastrophize your circumstances, is needed to punch through everyday positive illusions and focus you on your problems. "The basic idea is that depression and the genes that promote it were very adaptive for helping people – especially young children – not die of infection in the ancestral environment, even if those same behaviors are not helpful in our relationships with other people," he said. Miller and Raison concede that chronic stress has been shown to impair the immune system. For one thing, if depressive rumination were harmful, as most clinicians and researchers assume, then bouts of depression should be slower to resolve when people are given interventions that encourage rumination, such as having them write about their strongest thoughts and feelings.