Depression can blur memories

A new study has revealed that depression could be linked to confusion when it comes to past and present memories.

According to medicaldaily.com, researchers from Brigham Young University (BYU) conducted a memory test with depressed adults. The volunteers were shown a number of objects and asked to remember them. They were then shown a set of different objects as had to say whether they thought the objects were new, old or similar to another object they'd seen before.

The majority of respondents could identify new and old objects but some struggled to recognise objects they had seen before.

Brock Kirwan, a psychology and neuroscience professor at BYU, explained the reason behind this result.

"There are two areas in your brain where you grow new brain cells," he said. "One is the hippocampus, which is involved in memory. It turns out that this growth is decreased in cases of depression," reports medicalxpress.com.

Poor memory can lead to a variety of problems in life, such as not being able to remember what personal problem was shared with which people. Those who are concerned that they may be suffering from depression might want to go on a counselling course and speak to a professional.

The researchers hope their study can aid future studies and treatments.