Epidemiological transition and the phenomenon of depression in Indonesia: A narrative review

Indonesia is experiencing a macro transition (i.e., socio-demographic, economic) that co-occurs with the micro transitions, including epidemiological transitions in health. This transition is shown by the increase in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and decrease in communicable diseases (CDs). Depression is one of the NCDs that has become more prevalent in Indonesia over the last 20 years. The many possible causes of depression, which include biology, environment, culture, and the interaction between these factors, may be explained by this transition. This review discussed how this change could lead to an increase in depression in Indonesia. The way genes, environment, and culture interact could be an interesting topic, according to the current epidemiological transition in Indonesia in relation to depression occurrence.