Women who drink alcohol heavily over a short period of time or drink continuously over a number of days or weeks are likely to face more depression than men, says a study.

Sharon Wilsnack, from the University Of North Dakota School Of Medicine and Health Sciences and other researchers studied the alcohol intake of 6,009 men and 8,054 women and their history of depression, according to the online edition of BBC News.

The research, carried out by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Canada and the University of North Dakota found that women who were binge drinkers were more likely to be clinically depressed than men.

The researchers however reported in the journal, ‘Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research’ that moderate drinking was not likely to increase the risk in either sex.

‘More work was needed on whether drinking leads to depression, depression leads to drinking or whether the relationship is defined by something else,’ the research said.

Andy Bell, of the Mental Health Alliance, an umbrella group of charities and health professionals, agreed it was still not clear what came first - the drinking or depression.

‘We know the link (between binge drinking and depression) is significant, but it is also complex. People with mental health problems can have drink and drug addictions and often need a multi-disciplinary approach.’