Many clients come to me because of their struggle with depression. Some who have taken antidepressants found that it helped their mood, but many also said that doing exercise seems to improve their mood even further – and the effect is bigger when they exercise along with a friend. I wondered, therefore, how much scientific evidence there is out there to verify these experiences.
Substantial research has shown that exercise decreases the risk of diabetes and a range of other physical diseases. It also turns out that it can also offset somewhat the negative symptoms of depression.
Results from the ”Taiwan Longtitudinal Study on Aging” from 1996-2007 published this month demonstrate these effects strongly. Almost 2,700 people aged 65 and over participated right through the trial period, and depression was measured with a commonly used scale; at the outset, around a fifth of the participants reported depressive symptoms. Participants were then split into four groups: 15 minutes of exercise 3 times per week; 30 minutes of exercise 3 times per week; 15 minutes of exercise 6 times per week; and 30 minutes of exercise 6 times per week, 30 minutes/time.
The study prospectively analysed the effect of exercise group on depressive symptoms. Overall, participants doing the most exercise (30 minutes/6 times per week) showed a significant reduction in depressive symptoms across the whole period of the study. However, all groups showed a significantly reduced incidence of depressive symptoms as time progressed, even at the lowest levels of exercise (just 15 minutes/3 times per week).
The great thing about this trial is that it was organised prospectively, that is, the participants were randomly allocated to an exercise group at the start – rather than simply looking back at different groups over time who might have done more or less exercise for different reasons. So even just a little bit of exercise can really make a difference over the long run (Chang YC et.al; 2017).
I noticed with several of my clients who told me that just going for a walk and walking with a friend their mood improved. They also told me that the first time they felt the positive effects straightaway but if they continued to walk overtime their mood improved even more.
Reference: Chang Y C, Lu MC, Hu IH, Wu Wi, Hu SC (2017) ‘Effect of different amounts of exercise on preventing depressive symptoms in community dwelling older adults; a prospective cohort study in Taiwan’ BMJOpen7(4).