Depression danger zones for women.

Biological danger zones and environmental triggers play a complex and powerful role in the high rate of depression in women between the ages of 35 and 65, according to a panel of female physicians sponsored by the American Medical Women's Association. It cited certain periods in a woman's life when her biological makeup combined with external factors can increase her likelihood of becoming depressed. These depression danger zones include premenstrual syndrome or its more acute form, premenstrual dysphoric disorder; post-partum depression; and menopause, when women have an increased incidence of heart disease and breast cancer.

Approximately one in five women--nearly twice as many females as males--suffer from clinical depression, beginning most often in adolescence. Though the reasons why they may be more vulnerable to depression remain elusive, medical research is beginning to uncover some clues. There is evidence that it is related to an imbalance in the activity of the chemical messengers called neurotransmitters, particularly low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin. A 1997 study found that males synthesize serotonin at a rate 52% higher than that of females.

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and, to a greater extent, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) were highlighted as triggers for depression for women. PMDD differs from the better-known PMS in that its symptoms are as severe as those of major depression, with high levels of anger, irritability, anxiety, and mood swings that may interfere with ability to function socially or at work. They occur for a full week before, and begin to subside a few days after, the onset of menstruation. Women in the study taking the antidepressant Paxil, a selactive serotonin reuptake inhibitor, showed a significant reduction of depression, anxiety, anger, and irritability...