New research suggests that older Latinos living in the United States who perceive their neighborhoods as safer and more walkable are less likely to develop severe depressive symptoms, and the effect may be long term.

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign found that addressing safety concerns within local neighborhoods enhances the psychological well-being and quality of life of elderly residents. And providing interventions at the neighborhood and local government levels may be more cost-effective than individual-level therapies.

"Many times we look at individual-level factors or things within the individual's family that contribute to mental health, but here we're seeing it's beyond that -- it's the neighborhood and other macro-systems that can impact psychological well-being," Rosalba Hernandez, lead author of the study, said in a statement.

For the study, Rosalba and her colleagues examined links between the onset of depressive symptoms in 570 older Latino adults and various characteristics of the Greater Los Angeles neighborhoods they lived in, including crime, the availability and quality of sidewalks, traffic safety and aesthetics.

Participants ranged in age from 60 to 90, and 351 of them screened positive for low levels of depression at the outset of the study. When participants were rescreened 12 and 24 months later, a total of 19 (5.4 percent) of those with depression showed elevated symptoms.

However, people who perceived their neighborhoods as low in criminal activity and more walkable were less likely to develop severe depression, according to lead author Rosalba Hernandez, a professor of social work at the University of Illinois.

Older adults may be especially sensitive to neighborhood climate issues because their limited mobility and physical frailty exacerbates feelings of vulnerability to negative forces in their environments, Hernandez said.

"Latinos are going to be the largest ethnic minority very soon, and the aging population in the U.S. is growing as well," Hernandez said. "If we can potentially intervene before all these comorbidities and chronic illnesses converge, we can avert a potential health care crisis.

Research has shown that older Latino adults in the United States are at greater risk of depression, but cultural barriers prevent many of them from seeking mental health care.

Moreover, they are more likely to live in neighborhoods with higher crime rates and unsafe parks, discouraging both outdoor recreation and walking to nearby social activities that promote mental health. Many of the people in this demographic group also live in poverty and lack health insurance.

The findings are detailed in the Journal of Aging and Health.