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 People in the study who often attended religious services were less
likely to report symptoms of depression during the two-year study,
researchers found.
And those with signs of depression at the start of the study were
less likely to be depressed two years later if they engaged in
frequent private prayer.
This kind of so-called “observational” study, where researchers have
no control over their study subjects, can’t prove cause and effect.
It can’t say, for example, whether people became depressed because
they didn’t participate in religious activities, or whether the
depression itself was the reason they didn’t participate – or
whether something else was at play.
“It would be wrong to say ‘religion is good for you’ - this paper is
not saying that,” Dr. Gary Kennedy, who directs the Division of
Geriatric Psychiatry at Montefiore Medical Center in New York, told
Reuters Health by phone.
Kennedy, who was not involved in the new study, added, “But from a
clinical perspective, what I ask my patients is, ‘Have you abandoned
or have you given up your religious practice in association with
your depression?’”
He said that if the answer is ‘yes,’ he’d encourage the person to go
back to their faith.
The authors of the study say doctors should be aware of their
patients’ religious needs and that improving access to places of
worship may be helpful for religious older adults.
“Frequent service attendance is associated with more social
connections, which can reduce isolation and loneliness, two risk
factors for depression,” Corina Ronneberg told Reuters Health in an
email.
Ronneberg is a graduate student and researcher with the Department
of Gerontology at the John E. McCormack Graduate School of Policy
and Global Studies of the University of Massachusetts Boston. She
led the study, which was published in The Gerontologist.
“Private prayer may serve to cultivate hope and activate cognitive
resources that eventually counter depression,” Ronneberg said.
Ronneberg and her colleagues analyzed survey responses from the
large Health and Retirements Study conducted by the University of
Michigan. Altogether they had data from 7,732 people: 1,992 who were
depressed and 5,740 who were not depressed in 2006.
Depression was measured with an eight-symptom scale – participants
were determined to be depressed if they reported three or more
symptoms of depression.
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The researchers found that depressed and non-depressed participants
had similar religious affiliations, but non-depressed participants
attended worship services frequently: 45 percent did, compared to 37
percent of depressed individuals.
Also, Ronneberg said, “The group of respondents who were not
depressed at baseline were less likely to be depressed at follow-up
two years later if they attended religious services frequently.”
Participants from the group who were depressed at baseline were also
more likely to have recovered from depression at follow-up if they
engaged in more frequent private prayer.
Ronneberg said family members should ask their parents and loved
ones if their religious needs are being met and work with them to
meet those goals.
“If an older adult (is) interested in attending services in the
community but cannot do so because of deteriorating health, perhaps
family members can accommodate them by accompanying them to
services,” she said.
Ronneberg said places of worship could also reach out to older
adults and try to work with them to meet their religious needs.
Also, she said, health care providers should be aware of older
adults' religious needs and, if necessary, develop plans of care
that meet those needs.
Kennedy pointed out, “The people who had the highest religious
practice were less likely to develop depression - that doesn't mean
that religion protects you, but it means that that kind of activity
is associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms.”
He added, “I would not say to a depressed person, ‘You need to go to
church.’ I would say to a depressed person ‘if you've given up your
devotional activities or attendance, you need to get back to doing
that - you need to restore the socially supportive activities.’”
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1yvUNhJ The Gerontologist, online July 25,
2014.
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