Depression can cause women to not consistently use the pill or condoms.
- Depression is defined as a state of sadness or apathy.
- In France, women are twice as affected by this psychiatric illness as men.
- Depressed women tend to use contraception less regularly, according to a new study.
Depressed women are less consistent in their use of contraceptives (pills and condoms), according to a new investigation.
The data used in this study come from three groups of Germans of different ages: those born between 1991 and 1993, those born between 1981 and 1983, and those born between 1971 and 1973.
In these entities, the authors selected people who did not have children and who reported not having tried to conceive in the 12 months preceding their recruitment. Furthermore, all participants included in the cohort had been sexually active in the three months before the start of the experiment.
After sorting through all the profiles, the scientists finally selected for their experiment a group of 95 people suffering from depression in addition to all the criteria we have just mentioned. They then compared them to a group of 95 people with similar characteristics but not depressive.
Depressed women think they will have fewer children
The results then showed that women suffering from depression were less consistent in their use of contraceptives than non-depressed participants. They also believed that they would have fewer children during their lifetime.
These associations were not found in men.
“This study addressed a very important point by examining the relationship between depressive symptoms and consistency of contraceptive behavior. The link between these two factors has been demonstrated many times and could be replicated in a German sample,” summarize the authors of the study. “The present study therefore lays important foundations for further research on transnational samples,” they conclude.
The article titled “Depression, Contraception, and Ambivalence Concerning Fertility” was written by Sina Kremer, Alexander L. Gerlach, and Doris Erbe. It was published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior.
In France, women suffer twice as much from depression as men
According to the latest study by Public Health France on the subject, 13% of French women suffer from one or more depressive episodes during their life compared to only 6.4% of men.
“The first reason for this phenomenon is the societal pressure on women. They must be perfect at home, at work, while always remaining young and beautiful. This pressure on the physical does not exist for men. The same is true for the injunction to motherhood,” indicates in The Figaro psychiatrist Celine Tran.
What are the symptoms of depression?
According to the DMS5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition) criteria, depression is defined as a state of sadness or apathy.
“Depression can cause, among other things: appetite disturbance; sleep disturbances; difficulty adapting to new or unusual situations; hyperactivity or slowed motor function; severe fatigue; feelings of guilt or worthlessness;suicidal thoughts”, noted the brain institute.
