Physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption and depressive symptoms among young, early mature and late mature people in China

A study explored the effects of demographic and lifestyle factors on depressive symptoms based on the brain maturity in a large sample of Chinese population.
Adults from 8 health management centers in 6 provinces completed an online health self-report questionnaire. A total of 76,223 participants were included in the study, including 44,167 (57.9%) males and 32,056 (42.1%) females.
The percentage of clinically relevant depressive symptoms among young, early mature and late mature participants was 13.5%, 18.5% and 27.3%, respectively. Among young participants, being female was a risk factor for depressive symptoms, while having a bachelor’s or graduate degree, being married, smoking, and moderate alcohol consumption were protective factors. And among early mature participants, female, married and other marital status, BMI of 24-27.9 were risk factors, post-graduate education or above, smoking, moderate alcohol consumption and meeting exercise standard were protective factors. Among late mature participants, compared with junior high school, all other degrees were protective factors, as was meeting physical activity standards. Excessive alcohol consumption was a risk factor.
This study analysed the association among young, early mature and late mature participants respectively, and proposed strategies for improving healthy lifestyle of Chinese people. Their findings support the need for individualised recommendations to improve mental health based on brain maturity.
Source: Li Y, Zhang C, Ding S, Li J, Li L, Kang Y, Dong X, Wan Z, Luo Y, Cheng AS, Xie J, Duan Y. Physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption and depressive symptoms among young, early mature and late mature people: A cross-sectional study of 76,223 in China. J Affect Disord. 2021 Nov 23;299:60-66.