Statins may protect against depression Commonly prescribed to prevent heart attacks and strokes, statins may affect a person's emotional state. Thus, they protect him from depression, as scientists from Oxford University found..

An observational study conducted from April 2020 to February 2021 at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, when global stress levels were elevated and the number of psychiatric disorders peaked, yielded unexpected results.. The study included more than 2,000 US citizens who reported data on a variety of psychiatric symptoms, medications taken, and other lifestyle factors.. All of them were asked to perform cognitive performance tests to assess the level of processing of emotions, memory, and other qualities associated with vulnerability to depression..

Approximately 84% of study participants were not taking any medications, 6% were on antihypertensive drugs, 4% were on statins, and another 5% were on both categories of pills. It turned out that people who received statins were less likely to recognize angry or frightened faces and more often considered them positive during tests.. And this spoke of a reduced negative emotional background. Its increase is precisely associated with depression.. Statin use was associated with significantly lower levels of negative emotions, not seen with other medications, including blood pressure pills.

The conclusion of the British scientists is quite important, since there is evidence that statins can provide protection against depression by reducing negative emotional background.. In addition, a study conducted at the peak of the pandemic is the first to provide a possible psychological explanation for the benefits of statins in the processing of emotions.. However, it is not entirely clear how statins provide protection against mental disorders.. They may have some kind of anti-inflammatory mechanism..

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