Autumn is a season that affects health, whether it is colds, worsening rheumatism or seasonal sadness. Psychiatric specialists speak of Seasonal Affective Disorder, more commonly known as seasonal depression.
Seasonal Affective Disorder: Risk Factors
The onset of seasonal depression is influenced by both psychological and biological factors.
Regarding psychological factors, the arrival of autumn implies a change in daily life. The end of summer, the sunshine, the vacations, the return to routine… all of this means that outdoor activities are reduced. There are many people who resent this. However, we cannot call it depression but only mild and sub-syndromic pictures of little relevance.
On the other hand, biological factors are influenced by climate and hours of sunshine. The cold, for example, does not affect depressive symptoms in any significant way. However, it is true that many patients with depressive symptoms have a great intolerance to cold. This is because they have a dysregulation of body temperature.
The variation in daylight hours does affect affective disorders, especially depression. However, it is important to clarify that depression is not a single clinical entity, but a group of diseases with common but different symptoms. It is therefore necessary to distinguish between:
- Worsening of patients affected by Major Depressive Disorder or Bipolar Disorder. Between 20 and 25% of patients already suffering from severe forms of depression worsen during the seasonal change in autumn.
- Patients with Seasonal Affective Disorder. Patients with this disorder are well and in a normal mood during most of the year. But, during the winter period, they find it difficult to function well: they find it hard to get up, have gastric discomfort, increased appetite, have low energy and difficulties with attention and concentration, and also shy away from social contact.
Who is affected by Seasonal Affective Disorder?
Seasonal Affective Disorder can appear in early adulthood, from the age of 20. Like all depressive syndromes, it is more common in women. It usually occurs in high latitude regions of the northern hemisphere, with rates of almost 10% of the population found in countries such as Finland. When compared with sunny regions, such as Florida where the incidence is 1.5% of the affected population, the influence of light is evident.
In Spain, severe Seasonal Affective Disorder is very rare, possibly because of the large number of hours of sunshine throughout the year with a high degree of luminosity. If symptoms of this type of depression appear, they are very mild and transitory. Another issue is that of those people suffering from Major Depressive Disorder who experience a worsening of their clinical course.
Treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder
Patients already suffering from Affective Disorder, whether depression or bipolar disorder, it is vital that at this time of year they are especially careful with their treatment. At the slightest sign of feeling worse, it is important that they see their psychiatrist to re-evaluate and adjust their treatment. When it comes to Seasonal Affective Disorder, it is best to be alert to the evolution of the sensations it produces. If the patient also suffers fatigue, is sleepy during the day, is sad and isolated… it is time to consult a doctor. It will be the specialist who will establish the cause and if it is necessary to treat it according to the ailment and the peculiarities of each one.
There are two tips that can help in the treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder:
- Consumption of a balanced diet that provides sufficient vitamins and omega-3.
- Performing physical exercise outdoors, a simple walk, during daylight hours.