AGE AND DEPRESSION IN A NATIONALLY REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE OF CANADIANS- A PRELIMINARY LOOK AT THE NATIONAL-POPULATION HEALTH SURVEY

There are considerable inconsistencies in the literature concerning th e relationship between age and depression. Recently, however, two inde pendent studies in the U.S. have shown that the distribution is U-shap ed with the lowest reported levels of depression at ages 45-49. Three reasons for past inconsistencies are identified and addressed using th e 1994 National Population Health Survey by Statistics Canada. Using b oth a distress scale and a diagnostic measure, a substantially differe nt relationship was found. The prevalence of distress decreased steadi ly with age until about 65, with only a slight increase afterwards for both males and females. After the introduction of several sociodemogr aphic covariates, however, this relationship was clearly negative. The se findings are discussed in terms of future research questions.