An economically efficient way of tackling the enormous social and economic costs of mental ill health (Nature 477, 132 and Nature 478, 15; 2011) would be to boost 'resilience' to mood disorders.
Mentally healthy individuals often show a positive affective bias because their processing of negative information is inhibited. This effect, possibly mediated by the neuromodulator serotonin, promotes resilience by dampening the stress associated with negative life experiences.
Devising ways to promote such resilience in healthy individuals could help to prevent chronic stress-related brain disorders, saving huge amounts of money and heartache every year.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Disclaimer: Views presented in this Correspondence are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the US federal government.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Robinson, O. Boost resilience to tackle mental illness. Nature 478, 459 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/478459b
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/478459b
