Depression

Depression is a serious medical illness that involves the brain. It's more than just a feeling of being "down in the dumps" or "blue" for a few days. If you are one of the more than 20 million people in the United States who have depression, the feelings do not go away. They persist and interfere with your everyday life.

Clinical Depression: Diagnosis, Causes & Treatment

Depression is a clinical condition that, contrary to popular opinion, cannot simply be overcome with time and it needs to be treated.

How Does Your Diet Affect Depression?

Supporting Children with Mental Health Disorders

How Can I Tell if My Child is Depressed?

Ghrelin and Depression

Food Insecurity and Depression

Depression in children

Can Depression and Anxiety Occur Together?

Contributing Factors to Post-Adoption Depression

Causes of Depression

Genes and Depression

Antidepressants and Weight Changes

See more featured articles »

Treatment of Depression

Depression and Sleep Length

Link Between Chronic Illness and Depression

Treatment Options for Children with Depression

The Science Behind the Winter Blues: Understanding Seasonal Affective Disorder

5 Facts You May Not Know About Depression

How is Depression in Children Diagnosed?

Symptoms of Depression

Intrusive Thoughts and Depression

Situational Depression: Symptoms, Causes, Treatments

Depression Diagnosis

Prisoner Depression and Low Mood

Latest Depression News and Research

Neurogenesis stalls in the brains of adults with major depressive disorder, study shows

Most of our brain's 100 billion neurons are created before we're born, but the trickle of neurons created in the adult brain hippocampus could be instrumental in preventing depression, suggest findings from a new study by researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.

21 Aug 2026

Oxford study identifies brain mechanisms behind our sense of control

A study led by the University of Oxford has identified the brain mechanisms that help us work out whether the consequences we experience are caused by our own actions or by circumstances beyond our control.

21 Aug 2026

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy does not worsen depression symptoms

Researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison's Center for Healthy Minds (CHM), along with UW–Madison Department of Educational Psychology and a multi-university team, have found no evidence that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) increased a risk of symptom worsening, in a meta-analysis published in JAMA Network Open.

21 Aug 2026

Digital program reduces anxiety and depression in adults with chronic medical conditions

A digital program combining guided movement, breathing and meditation exercises, and coping-skills training reduced anxiety and depression symptoms in adults with chronic medical conditions, according to a new study published August 20th in the open access journal PLOS Medicine by Puneeta Tandon of the University of Alberta, Canada, and colleagues.

20 Aug 2026

Psilocybin may make the brain more organized than scientists expected

In 62 adults, researchers combined fMRI, EEG and machine learning to examine how psilocybin reshapes brain activity during rest, meditation, music and movie viewing. They found that context-sensitive neural organization tracked the intensity and quality of psychedelic experiences and was associated with next-day mindset change.

20 Aug 2026

Parental loss doubles children's risk of mental health disorders

A new, large-scale Curtin University study has found children who experience parental loss are twice as likely to develop a mental health disorder, compared to those living with both parents.

19 Aug 2026

World's largest single-site study maps brain changes under psilocybin

A landmark five-year study by Monash University has found psychedelics reorganise brain patterns, giving clinicians powerful new insights into their therapeutic potential.

19 Aug 2026

Real-world study shows Oregon psilocybin services relieve mental health symptoms

People participating in an Oregon Health & Science University-led study of state-regulated psilocybin services reported relief from symptoms of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder - with almost two-thirds declaring the experience to be among the most meaningful of their life.

19 Aug 2026

New optical control platform blocks and restores neural signaling

DGIST (President Kunwoo Lee) announced that a research team led by Professor Ji Won Um of the Center for Synapse Diversity and Specificity, Department of Brain Sciences, in collaboration with a research team led by Professor Alice Ting at Stanford University, has developed LATeNT, a novel optical control platform that uses light to block signal transmission between neurons and subsequently restore normal signaling.

19 Aug 2026

Women with type 2 diabetes saw striking changes after 24 weeks of this eating pattern

A 24-week randomized trial found that a lacto-vegetarian diet combined with 14-hour time-restricted eating improved glycemic control, insulin resistance, body weight, and lipid measures in Indian women with type 2 diabetes. The combined, nutritionist-supported intervention was generally well tolerated, but its individual dietary and fasting effects cannot be separated and longer-term studies are needed.

18 Aug 2026

Multiple long-term conditions raise pregnancy risks, study finds

Women who begin pregnancy with two or more pre-existing, long-term physical or mental health conditions have 20% higher risk of miscarriage, 69% higher risk of severe nausea and vomiting, and around four times the risk of anxiety and depression, compared with those with no long-term conditions.

18 Aug 2026

Racism shapes grief and bereavement experiences, major UK study finds

Racism directly impacts how people experience grief and bereavement, according to the largest study of its kind.

18 Aug 2026

Shifting expectations of unpredictability could help treat schizophrenia delusions

New research has found that improvements to the severity of delusions in patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorder recovering from an acute psychotic episode were significantly associated with reductions in volatility priors—someone's expectations about the unpredictability of their environment.

18 Aug 2026

Music activates brain networks for imagination and meaning

In a new paper appearing Aug. 18 in Nature Communications, Princeton University researchers show how music produces distinct patterns in the regions of the brain associated with imagination and meaning, similar to those prompted by spoken narratives.

18 Aug 2026

Severe mental illness may accelerate dementia and stroke vulnerability

People living with severe mental illness face a substantially higher risk of dementia throughout adulthood, as well as a significantly elevated risk of stroke in early and middle adulthood, according to a large new study based on health records from Catalonia, Spain.

17 Aug 2026

Drink spiking is not just a nightclub problem, new UK data suggest

A UK-wide analysis of Drinkaware surveys found that suspected drink spiking and needling are widely underreported, with only 7% of affected 2022 respondents reporting the incident to the police. The findings also reveal gaps in public awareness, demographic differences in reported experiences, and psychological and physical effects that some respondents said persisted for decades.

17 Aug 2026

Review examines mental health impact of prolonged collective trauma

A new systematic review published in Frontiers in Psychiatry brings together 68 studies from the first two years after the October 7 attacks, offering insights that extend far beyond Israel into how prolonged conflict, cumulative exposure and continuing threat can shape post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression and addiction-related outcomes.

17 Aug 2026