Lifestyle- and diet-related factors in late-life depression--a 5-year follow-up of elderly European men: the FINE study.
OBJECTIVE
Late-life depression is one of the main health problems among elderly populations and a key element of healthy ageing. Causal relationships of lifestyle- and diet-related factors in late-life depression are unclear. This study investigates prospective associations of lifestyle- and diet-related factors with development of categorically defined late-life depression in a well-documented population of elderly European men.


METHODS
Altogether 526 not-demented and not-depressed European men aged 70-89 at baseline were included in the analyses. The association of lifestyle-related and dietary factors with development of categorically defined depression (> =48/80 on the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale) was assessed in a follow-up of 5 years.


RESULTS
Eleven percent (n=59) of the men developed depression during follow-up. An independent association with development of depression was found for baseline depressive status [Odds Ratio (OR) 1.19, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.10-1.28, p<0.001], a decline in serum total cholesterol level between study years (OR 1.76, 95%CI: 1.01-3.04, p=0.045), physical activity (OR 0.97, 95%CI: 0.94-1.00, p=0.022) and moderate alcohol intake (OR 0.35, 95%CI: 0.14-0.87, p=0.023) but not for dietary factors.


CONCLUSIONS
This study of a well-documented population of elderly European men confirms that physical activity and moderate alcohol consumption may protect against depression in the old-old. Our results are the first to suggest that a decline in serum cholesterol level may predict development of late-life depression. As the effects of age, medication and incipient cognitive decline could not be entirely ruled out; this finding must be interpreted with care.
Bots
Sinikka
S
Department of Epidemiology and Health Promotion, National Public Health Institute, Helsinki, Finland. Sinikka.Bots@ktl.fi
Tijhuis
Marja
M
Giampaoli
Simona
S
Kromhout
Daan
D
Nissinen
Aulikki
A
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000209:etiology*; D004032:Diet / Q000523:psychology*; D005060:Europe; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015438:Health Behavior; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors