Teaching seniors to use Internet cuts depression risk

According to new research by a Michigan State University professor published in the Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, computer use among retirees reduces the risk of depression by more than 30%.

And don't worry that Grandpa doesn't yet understand this newfangled Internet-thing. It's never too late to learn, said Sheila Cotten, lead author and a professor of telecommunication, information studies and the media.

Researchers wanted to focus on retirees -- those who no longer have jobs that force them to interact in person or online. With other factors held constant -- such as whether the seniors lived with other people -- the authors found that roughly 7 in 100 Internet users were estimated to have depression, whereas 10 in 100 non-computer users were estimated to have depression. In other words, Internet use led to a more than 30% reduction in the probability of depression.

It's not clear what the participants were doing -- checking e-mail, shopping or searching for information. And that doesn't matter, Cotten said: "It's really about being able to connect and communicate and find information you need."