Fathers who show signs of depression may be more likely to have kids who show signs of depression, especially in their teen years, according to a new study in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Previous research has shown an association between maternal depression and adolescent depression, but few studies have looked for links between fathers' and kids' depression.
"Men are less likely to seek treatment than women, so it is important to encourage fathers to seek health care services," said study coauthor Dr Gemma Lewis of University College London. Depression risk increases around age 13, and about three-fourths of adults say their mental health problems began during their teen years.
"The priority should be the treatment of depression in both parents, irrespective of their gender," Lewis told Reuters Health by email. "Fathers should also be involved in any family-based interventions to improve the prevention of teenage depression." Lewis and colleagues looked at data from two programs that have followed children since the early 2000s - the UK Millennium Cohort Study and Growing Up in Ireland. Altogether, they studied more than 6,000 Irish two-parent families and nearly 8,000 UK two-parent families.