Question

Does depression shrink the frontal lobe of your brain.

Answer 1

The latest research shows that the size of specific brain regions can decrease in people who experience depression.

Researchers continue to debate which regions of the brain can shrink due to depression and by how much. But current studies have shown that the following parts of the brain can be affected:

hippocampus
thalamus
amygdala
frontal
prefrontal cortices
The amount these areas shrink is linked to the severity and length the depressive episode lasts.

In the hippocampus, for example, noticeable changes can occur anywhere from 8 months to a yearTrusted Source during a single bout of depression or multiple, shorter episodes.

That said, when a section of the brain shrinks, so do the functions associated with that particular section.

For instance, the prefrontal cortex and amygdala work together to control emotional responses and the recognition of emotional cues in other people. This can potentially contribute to a reduction in empathy in individuals who have postpartum depression (PPD).

There are also new links being made between inflammation and depression. It’s still not clear, however, whether inflammation causes depression or vice versa.

But brain inflammation during depression is linked to the amount of time a person has been depressed. One recent studyTrusted Source showed that people depressed for more than 10 years showed 30 percent more inflammation compared to people depressed for less time.

As a result, significant brain inflammation is more likely to be relevant in persistent depressive disorder.

Because brain inflammation can cause the cells of the brain to die, this can lead to a number of complications, including:

shrinkage (discussed above)
decreased function of neurotransmitters
reduced ability of the brain to change as the person ages (neuroplasticity)
Together these can lead to dysfunctions in:

brain development
learning
memory
mood

Answer 2

Answer: Yes

Step-by-step explanation:

Here's a quote from WebMD about it:

There's growing evidence that several parts of the brain shrink in people with depression. Specifically, these areas lose gray matter volume (GMV). That's tissue with a lot of brain cells. GMV loss seems to be higher in people who have regular or ongoing depression with serious symptoms.