1. Home>
2. Specialties>
3. Psychiatry>
4. Summary and Comment

Are Allergies Bad for Your Mood?

Unlike controls, rhinitis patients experienced mood changes -- greater lethargy, sadness, and mental fatigue -- during the ragweed season.

People with seasonal allergies often report mental fatigue. Compared with nondepressed individuals, patients with clinical depression have been found to have much higher rates of allergic disorders, whether self-reported (43% vs. 71%) or professionally diagnosed (35% vs. 64%). These researchers investigated whether seasonal allergies are also associated with changes in mood, as measured by standardized scales. They prospectively assessed seasonal differences in rhinitis symptoms, mood, and fatigue for 1 to 2 years in 32 patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis and in 25 controls. Rhinitis patients were not preselected for mood, fatigue, or cognitive complaints and were not taking antihistamines.

Before the study began, 69% of patients reported that allergic reactions were typically accompanied by increased irritability; 63% reported more fatigue; 41% reported difficulty in staying awake; and 31% reported sad feelings. Unlike the control group, the rhinitis group experienced mood changes during ragweed season. Energy and positive affect in the rhinitis group declined (i.e., patients had greater lethargy and sadness), and their mental -- but not physical -- fatigue increased (i.e., patients had concentration difficulties).

Comment: Proposed mechanisms linking allergies to depressed mood include the release of interleukin-1ß (a proinflammatory cytokine that induces sickness behavior), cholinergic hypersensitivity, and ß-adrenergic hyposensitivity. The last 2 states have been associated with symptom patterns that resemble the vegetative symptoms of depression. Researchers have linked similar processes to responses to psychological stressors. Other researchers suggest that allergies and depression share genetically based, etiologic processes. Further studies are warranted to clarify these associations and to investigate whether allergy treatment alleviates depression symptoms in allergy sufferers.

— Joel Yager, MD

Published in Journal Watch Psychiatry September 18, 2002

Citation(s):

Marshall PS et al. Effects of seasonal allergic rhinitis on fatigue levels and mood. Psychosom Med 2002 Jul/Aug; 64:684-91.

• Original article (Subscription may be required)
• Medline abstract (Free)