Scientists from Aarhus University (Denmark) found that smoking increases the risk of depressive and bipolar disorders. Research results published In the Norwegian journal Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica (APS).
Approximately 350 thousand people participated in the study, whose data were obtained from the British Biobank, the largest repository of biological samples. Scientists collected information about the participants’ health conditions, determined whether they had bad habits and mental illnesses, and also analyzed their DNA.
Researchers found a number of recurrent genetic variants in the genomes of participants who smoked. Most likely, the predisposition to this bad habit is hereditary. At the same time, children of adoptive parents who smoked also had a higher risk of developing nicotine addiction.
Scientists have suggested that nicotine blocks the absorption of serotonin in the brain, which can lead to depression. There is an opinion that this disease disrupts the metabolism of neurotransmitters (serotonin and norepinephrine). So the human body stops producing enough of one of these. This pathology also accompanies bipolar disorder, which is characterized by periods of emotional highs (mania) and lows (depression).
Researchers also believe that the development of depressive and bipolar disorders is caused by smoking causing inflammation in the brain. This process can lead to damage to individual areas responsible for mood regulation.
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