Diabetes and Mental Health: The Unseen Connection
A study highlights a two-way link between diabetes complications and mental health conditions. Both groups share risk factors like obesity and poor blood sugar control. The study suggests simultaneous treatments could mitigate risks. Findings were based on data from over eight lakh individuals spanning 17 years.
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- India
A groundbreaking study has unearthed a two-way relationship between diabetes complications, such as heart attacks and strokes, and mental health conditions like anxiety and depression. Researchers discovered that the presence of any problem from the first group increases the likelihood of an issue from the second group, and vice versa.
According to researchers, the connection could be indirect, as both diabetes complications and mental health issues share numerous risk factors, including obesity and difficulties in controlling blood sugar levels. This overlap could heighten the risk of developing both sets of disorders.
Maya Watanabe, a biostatistician at Harvard University's School of Public Health and the study's lead author, noted, "Most likely, a combination of direct and indirect effects and shared risk factors drive the association we are seeing."
Moreover, the study reviewed insurance claims from 2001 to 2018, analyzing data from over five lakh individuals with type 1 or type 2 diabetes and more than 3.5 lakh without diabetes. The findings revealed that those with chronic diabetes complications faced a two to three-fold higher risk of mental health conditions. Conversely, those with mental health disorders had a 2.5 times higher likelihood of experiencing sustained diabetes complications.
Senior author Brian Callaghan, a professor of neurology at the University of Michigan, explained, "For instance, a stroke causes detrimental effects on the brain, which may directly lead to depression." He added that mental health conditions and diabetes could adversely affect a person's management of their condition, potentially leading to worse outcomes.
(With inputs from agencies.)
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