Diabetes, depression increase risk of early death

June 22, 2005 in Diabetes & Diabetes Prevention, Nutrition Topics in the News

Diabetes, depression increase risk of early death

Researchers from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston have found that the combination of diabetes and depression may increase a person’s risk of dying early.

Among the 10,000 study participants, those with both diabetes and depression were 2.5 times more likely to die during the study period of 8 years, compared to the risk of dying from each individual condition.

While diabetes is known to increase the risk of heart disease, stroke and other ills, it has been unclear as to whether the combination of diabetes and depression may be deadlier than either alone.

These study findings suggest there is an increased risk when the two conditions are combined. As a result, researchers recommend that people living with diabetes be routinely screened for depression once a year.  Past studies have shown that people with diabetes have a higher-than-average rate of depression, which may, according to researchers, be related to the stress of dealing with a chronic disease.

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