A Stanford University study has found that depression could be caused by crossed wires in the brain that stop people experiencing pleasure.

MRI scans showed demonstrated the extent of the differences between depressed and non-depressed individuals. The depressed people showed decreased connectivity between areas of the brain responsible for emotional behaviour, learning, memory and decision making.

Steph says: While these results don’t really give us much to go on, when we have a cause, we’re more likely to be able to establish a proper cure. I’ll be keeping an eye out for future research along these lines!

Written exclusively for The Life Dept | Live Longer | 8 December 2011.

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