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It’s important to understand the causes of depression before understanding how it makes a person feel.

Despite a good deal of research over the past few decades, researchers have not yet been successful in identifying the specific causes of depression. These researchers are continuing in their work, but the answers are coming slowly. What is known about depression is that those who suffer from it may have some experiences in common with which they have to deal. Depression can be caused by what they eat, how they were brought up, and how they relate to certain things that go on around them.

First, heredity plays a big role in who will have to deal with depression. If one or both of a person’s parents suffer from depression, then their children have a higher likelihood of suffering from the same problem. It is believed that between forty and seventy percent of those who suffer from depression have it because to runs in the family. If you find a depressive person in a family, it is not unlikely that one or more of their siblings will have problem as well.

Others suffering depression can have the disease because of an imbalance of the chemicals in the brain. In these cases, antidepressants can work to help right the imbalances and replace some of chemicals that should be there. These drugs include serotonin and norepinephrine. Physicians and researchers are not clear on why these imbalances occur, but they do agree that correcting the imbalance of chemicals can go a long way to dealing with eliminating the symptoms.

Studies recently have pointed to a suggestive pattern in the hippocampus. This part of the brain deals specifically with memory and mood. Research has linked this area as a possible source of depression since when the chemical serotonin is low it certainly affects mood, but when it is increased with medications both mood and memory improve greatly. Therefore proving the researchers claim.

Some people suffer depression due to what has been called seasonal affective disorder, also known as SAD. SAD has only been recognized as an ailment in the recent past. This syndrome is caused by the reduced hours of sunlight once winter approaches and the days grow shorter, the cause may be that when there is less sun, the body manufactures more melatonin and that this is the cause of the problem. There is actually a therapy that has been developed to help counter this problem called bright light therapy or phototherapy. Many people respond to this therapy with generally good results.

In the ongoing look for answers to the question of what causes depression diet has come up as a possible contributing factor. Researchers have claimed omega-3 fatty acids, found in fish and in heavily processed foods, can be a trigger for depression. Studies were conducted to prove this point at schools and prisons. A study with laboratory rats showed excessive omega acids appeared to cause depression in the rats.

Whatever the cause of a person’s depression, learning to deal with it, by therapy or medication can alleviate the symptoms.

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Scott Meyers is a staff writer for It’s Entirely Natural, a resource for helping you achieve a naturally healthy body, mind, and spirit. You may contact our writers through the web site. Follow this link for more information on Depression.

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Tags: Depression, melatonin, serotonin

Amongst the many different causes of depression, one that greatly affects the mood and creates depression is called Seasonal Affective Disorder (also known as SAD). SAD can and should be treated. SAD treatment can have a dramatic effect on a person, lifting the physical causes of depression. Therapy for SAD is actually fairly straightforward. Researchers claim that ten percent of depressives’ condition is primarily caused by Seasonal Affective Disorder. This article deals with the causes and treatment for SAD.

What causes Seasonal Affective Disorder? It is a depression that is directly related to the seasons and how much sunlight the person is exposed to. As the days get shorter these people suffer from the lack of light and changes in their body clock. The worst months for those suffering from SAD differ by latitude, but can start as early as September in the Northern countries, and can end as late as April as the days are growing longer and there is more sunlight available.

The symptoms of SAD are similar to most other mood disorders. The person will have no motivation to do anything. They can feel tired all the time but generally don’t sleep very well. They will have an increase in the amount of sweets that they want to eat, frequently eating so sugar that they begin to put on weight. There will be a decrease in their interest in sex. The person will be irritable, sad, feel worthless, sufferer from low self-esteem and may withdraw from friends and family. This feeling of depression will last all through the shorter daylight time unless something is done.

The exact reason that this occurs is not clear and research continues to try to better understand this phenomenon. SAD is believed to be related to the levels of serotonin and melatonin in the body that are imbalanced by the diminished hours of sunlight. There are a few ways to improve this imbalance. The best ways are natural. For example a person should try to spend more time outside during the day. Exercising outside is a great way to help reduce SAD-caused depression. Exercise releases endorphins, which naturally make the depressive feel better. If one combines exercise and exposure to more sunlight, one is on his way to an improvement in mood.

Phototherapy is another option. A mere two hours of daily exposure to phototherapy treatments can make a huge difference to a person’s mood. Most phototherapy is done at night, but for those who suffer more serious bouts of SAD, there are also dawn simulators; these will actually simulate a day’s worth of sunlight during the morning hours.

Antidepressants are another method of helping those dealing with Seasonal Affective Disorder along with the phototherapy sessions. Most people with this depressive disorder find that one treatment or a combination will help them get through this problem until the days are once again longer, and the amount of natural sunlight increases.

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Scott Meyers is a staff writer for It’s Entirely Natural, a resource for helping you achieve a naturally healthy body, mind, and spirit. You may contact our writers through the web site. Follow this link for more information on Depression.

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Tags: Depression, exercise, melatonin, serotonin, sleep

Amongst the many different causes of depression, one that greatly affects the mood and creates depression is called Seasonal Affective Disorder (also known as SAD). SAD can and should be treated. SAD treatment can have a dramatic effect on a person, lifting the physical causes of depression. Therapy for SAD is actually fairly straightforward. Researchers claim that ten percent of depressives’ condition is primarily caused by Seasonal Affective Disorder. This article deals with the causes and treatment for SAD.

What causes Seasonal Affective Disorder? It is a depression that is directly related to the seasons and how much sunlight the person is exposed to. As the days get shorter these people suffer from the lack of light and changes in their body clock. The worst months for those suffering from SAD differ by latitude, but can start as early as September in the Northern countries, and can end as late as April as the days are growing longer and there is more sunlight available.

The symptoms of SAD are similar to most other mood disorders. The person will have no motivation to do anything. They can feel tired all the time but generally don’t sleep very well. They will have an increase in the amount of sweets that they want to eat, frequently eating so sugar that they begin to put on weight. There will be a decrease in their interest in sex. The person will be irritable, sad, feel worthless, sufferer from low self-esteem and may withdraw from friends and family. This feeling of depression will last all through the shorter daylight time unless something is done.

The exact reason that this occurs is not clear and research continues to try to better understand this phenomenon. SAD is believed to be related to the levels of serotonin and melatonin in the body that are imbalanced by the diminished hours of sunlight. There are a few ways to improve this imbalance. The best ways are natural. For example a person should try to spend more time outside during the day. Exercising outside is a great way to help reduce SAD-caused depression. Exercise releases endorphins, which naturally make the depressive feel better. If one combines exercise and exposure to more sunlight, one is on his way to an improvement in mood.

Phototherapy is another option. A mere two hours of daily exposure to phototherapy treatments can make a huge difference to a person’s mood. Most phototherapy is done at night, but for those who suffer more serious bouts of SAD, there are also dawn simulators; these will actually simulate a day’s worth of sunlight during the morning hours.

Antidepressants are another method of helping those dealing with Seasonal Affective Disorder along with the phototherapy sessions. Most people with this depressive disorder find that one treatment or a combination will help them get through this problem until the days are once again longer, and the amount of natural sunlight increases.

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Scott Meyers is a staff writer for It’s Entirely Natural, a resource for helping you achieve a naturally healthy body, mind, and spirit. You may contact our writers through the web site. Follow this link for more information on Depression.

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Tags: Depression, exercise, melatonin, serotonin, sleep