New research from the University of Michigan found that fuzzy thinking a commonly reported feeling among those suffering from depression, where one's thinking is fuzzy or less sharp is both a symptom of those with depression and bipolar disorder, which suggests that bipolar disorder and depression could be the same diagnosis, rather than two separate ones, according to Medical News Today.
This could affect the way parents raise their children, as 5.7 million American adults are diagnosed with bipolar disorder and 17.6 million suffer from depression each year. Children who grow up in families where parents have depression or mental health issues often have emotional, physical and mental developmental struggles.
To discover the link between bipolar disorder and depression, University of Michigan researchers measured how well 150 healthy women, 266 women diagnosed with depression and 202 women diagnosed with bipolar disorder sustained information while taking a test. The study only used female participants to control for gender.
The women with depression and bipolar disorder showed similar struggles retaining information, which told researchers that bipolar disorder and depression may be linked.
"In all, we show a shared cognitive dysfunction in women with mood disorders, which were pronounced in the cognitive control tests and more nuanced in scans," lead author Kelly Ryan said in a press release. "Traditionally in psychiatry we look at a specific diagnosis, or category. But the neurobiology is not categorical we're not finding huge differences between what clinicians see as categories of disease. This raises questions about traditional diagnoses."
More diagnoses of depression or bipolar disorder could affect families as children from families who have these symptoms often have trouble in their physical, mental and emotional development.
For example, children who grow up with bipolar parents will more often display risky sexual behavior, among other psychosocial issues, according to Psych Central. Children with bipolar parents are also 14 times more likely to develop bipolar disorder than kids who come from families without those disorders, CNN reported.
Research says that in general, parents sometimes pass their anxiety and stress issues often known to cause or be symptoms of depression onto their children. A new study from a team of researchers from the United States, Great Britain and Sweden found that children who are raised in environments where parents have anxiety and stress will pick up on those traits and also suffer from those issues as they grow up.
In fact, Emily Hales of the Deseret News reported last year that 65 percent of children with anxiety disorders had parents with similar mental health issues. This has, over time, led to an increase in depressed adolescents, too.
But as the U.K.s National Health Services suggests, these studies are more evidence that parents can use to educate themselves about neurological disorders that could also impact their children. Education can help those parents find help, which would ultimately benefit their children.
Dr. Robert Freedman, a journal editor, told the NHS that, Parents who are anxious can now be counseled and educated on ways to minimize the impact of their anxiety on the child's development."
This could affect the way parents raise their children, as 5.7 million American adults are diagnosed with bipolar disorder and 17.6 million suffer from depression each year. Children who grow up in families where parents have depression or mental health issues often have emotional, physical and mental developmental struggles.
To discover the link between bipolar disorder and depression, University of Michigan researchers measured how well 150 healthy women, 266 women diagnosed with depression and 202 women diagnosed with bipolar disorder sustained information while taking a test. The study only used female participants to control for gender.
The women with depression and bipolar disorder showed similar struggles retaining information, which told researchers that bipolar disorder and depression may be linked.
"In all, we show a shared cognitive dysfunction in women with mood disorders, which were pronounced in the cognitive control tests and more nuanced in scans," lead author Kelly Ryan said in a press release. "Traditionally in psychiatry we look at a specific diagnosis, or category. But the neurobiology is not categorical we're not finding huge differences between what clinicians see as categories of disease. This raises questions about traditional diagnoses."
More diagnoses of depression or bipolar disorder could affect families as children from families who have these symptoms often have trouble in their physical, mental and emotional development.
For example, children who grow up with bipolar parents will more often display risky sexual behavior, among other psychosocial issues, according to Psych Central. Children with bipolar parents are also 14 times more likely to develop bipolar disorder than kids who come from families without those disorders, CNN reported.
Research says that in general, parents sometimes pass their anxiety and stress issues often known to cause or be symptoms of depression onto their children. A new study from a team of researchers from the United States, Great Britain and Sweden found that children who are raised in environments where parents have anxiety and stress will pick up on those traits and also suffer from those issues as they grow up.
In fact, Emily Hales of the Deseret News reported last year that 65 percent of children with anxiety disorders had parents with similar mental health issues. This has, over time, led to an increase in depressed adolescents, too.
But as the U.K.s National Health Services suggests, these studies are more evidence that parents can use to educate themselves about neurological disorders that could also impact their children. Education can help those parents find help, which would ultimately benefit their children.
Dr. Robert Freedman, a journal editor, told the NHS that, Parents who are anxious can now be counseled and educated on ways to minimize the impact of their anxiety on the child's development."
