Why women have higher genetic risk of depression?

Around 13,000 genetic markers linked with depression in women compared with 7,000 markers in men, says study

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More than 300 million people across the globe have depression, according to the World Health Organisation.

Women are genetically at higher risk of clinical depression than men, Australian researchers found in a study published on Wednesday that could change how the disorder is treated.

Billed as one of the largest-ever studies of its kind, scientists poured through the DNA of almost 200,000 people with depression to pinpoint shared genetic “flags”.

Women had almost twice as many of these genetic markers linked to depression than men, according to the project led by Australia’s Berghofer Medical Research Institute.