Andrey Kamenov, Ph.D. Probability and Statistics
According to a survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 13 percent of American men and 21 percent of American women suffer from different depressive disorders.
While the condition itself in many cases warrants seeking medical assistance, it is also strongly correlated with general health levels. Unfortunately, it seems impossible for us to know whether depression caused by other health problems is a significant factor in the relationship. The fact is, 14 percent of people suffering from depression rated their health as “poor”, compared to only 4 percent of other survey participants. The numbers of respondents who said that they have excellent health were 8 and 20 percent correspondingly.
Now we’ll set the medical studies aside for a while and take a look at what we can find by carefully examining the data alone.
First, here’s a map showing the states with the highest rates of depression in the last four years:
Yes, you guessed it - sunny California is the best place to prevent you from being depressed. New Jersey also saw virtually the same numbers.
But which other non-medical factors influence depression rates? As usual, the first ones we look at are getting enough sleep (at least 7 hours per day on average) and exercising (the survey uses quite a broad definition, including golf and gardening, for instance).
Two things stand out on this chart. First of all, both adequate sleep and physical activity are linked with generally lower depression levels in all age groups. More so, they seem to work synergistically. People who get both show much lower disorder incidence rates than those who neither exercise nor sleep enough.
There's another interesting observation: while the effects of sufficient sleep are seemingly independent of age, physical activity becomes increasingly important for older survey participants. The turning point here seems to be the age of 30. By the age of 50, exercise even becomes more important than sleeping well - but still, you're better off if you don't have to choose.
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About Andrey Kamenov
Andrey Kamenov, Ph.D. Probability and Statistics
Andrey Kamenov is a data scientist working for Advameg Inc. His background includes teaching statistics, stochastic processes and financial mathematics in Moscow State University and working for a hedge fund. His academic interests range from statistical data analysis to optimal stopping theory. Andrey also enjoys his hobbies of photography, reading and powerlifting.
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