Children who suffer from depression are more likely to develop heart disease as early as their teen years. Parents of depressed children were also found to have a higher rate of heart disease.
"Given that the parents in this sample were relatively young, we were quite surprised to find that the parents of the affected adolescents were reporting a history of heart attacks and other serious events," Associate Professor of Psychology Jonathon Rottenberg said in a University of South Florida.
It is known that depressed adults are more likely to suffer a heart attack but little was known about this link early in life. This new research suggests vigorously treating childhood depression could reduce the rates of adult cardiovascular disease.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in both American men and women; it is responsible for one in four U.S. deaths every year.
The researchers looked at Hungarian children who had participated in a 2004 study focusing on genetics and depression. They compared factors such as "smoking, obesity, physical activity level, and parental history" in the study subjects.
The team looked at over 200 children who had a history of clinical depression and about 200 of their siblings who had not experienced depression. They also analyzed 150 children who were not related and hadn't struggled with depression.
"Rottenberg plans to conduct additional research in order to understand why depression early in life may put people at increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Further studies planned with the Hungarian group will also examine whether any early warning signs of heart disease are present as these adolescents move into young adulthood," the news release reported.
The study was published online in Psychosomatic Medicine and is scheduled to be included in the medical journal's February 2014 issue.
