Women and Depression: Biological Factors

War, losing a family member, financial problems, preparation for final exams, these are just one of many reasons that may cause a person to upset, sad or worry. Consequently, it can be serious enough to cause a mental disease, which is what we normally call "depression". Women statistically are the majority group who is diagnosed each year with either anxiety or depression. It is nearly twice as many as men. In addition, they have some unique risk factors for the disorders; they are also facing some variations of depression specific to their sex (Dennis and Charles 147). There’re several major causes of depression that may occur in women involving biological (i.e. genetics, hormones), social (social roles, discrimination), psychological (personality development), and other factors (life events) (Ernest and William 542). While these factors may be discussed independently, the combination of them with the biological aspect may increase women’s vulnerability to depression. The biological cause might be one of the primary factors that leads to the disease and also distinguishes men’s with women’s easy-to-be-infected possibility.
The two primary biological factors that have been explored are derived from genetics and hormone theories. The X-link hypothesis states that the genetics material that predisposes an individual for depression is located on the X chromosomes. Consequently, women have a larger chance of receiving a depression-prone X chromosome than men and all daughters of a depressed father and non-depressed mother should be depressed (Ernest and William 543). As a result, men just have few effects according to the genetics theory.
It has been said that compared to men, women experience some tidal hormones levels such as estrogen, estradiol, progesterone, and FSH (follicle-stimulating hormone) during some special periods in life can cause depression. These changes may affect mood and susceptibility to depression (Dennis and Charles 148) and will be

References: Beckham, Enerst and William Leber. Handbook of Depression. 2nd ed. New York: The Guilford Press, 1995. Rosenthal, M.Sara. Women & Depression. Los Angeles: Lowell House, 2000. Charney, Dennis and Charles Nemeroff. The Peace of Mind Prescription. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. " Women and Depression" University of Michigan Depression Center. 2003-2008 <http://www.depressioncenter.org/understanding/women.asp>