According to a study published in the famous medical journal The British Medical Journal, Walking, running, yoga, and muscle-strengthening exercises help reduce symptoms of depression.
This is the first time that large-scale scientific work has highlighted the importance of physical exercise in the fight against depression.
A study carried out on more than 14,000 depressed patients
This meta-analysis compared the effects of different sports on depression symptoms. More than 14,000 (14,170) people participated in this study.
The researchers analyzed a certain amount of data: the type of sport practiced, frequency, intensity and duration. They also took into account the age, sex, severity of symptoms and co-morbidities (associated diseases) of each participant.
Walking and running as new treatments for depression?
After analyzing all the data cited above, scientists realized that certain sporting activities helped reduce the symptoms of depression. So, walking, running, yoga and muscle strengthening exercises have been shown to be very effective in combating the symptoms of depression.
These sports helped to moderately reduce depressive symptoms. This was not observed in participants in the control group who had benefited from traditional treatments for depression or placebo treatments.
Walking and running were the sports that had the greatest effect on depressive symptoms. Yoga and muscle strengthening come in third and fourth place, respectively.
This work also showed that aerobic exercises (swimming, cycling, skiing, etc.) and the practice of tai chi or qi gong had beneficial effects on the symptoms of depression, but to a lesser extent.
The more intense the exercises, the greater the effects
The authors of this study indicate that the positive effects of sport on depression are proportional to the intensity of the practice. In other words, the more intense the physical activity, the greater the reduction in symptoms.
In addition, the study highlights that the sports most appreciated by depressed patients are muscle strengthening exercises and yoga.
This finding is very important for clinical practice (treatment and management of patients by health professionals based on clinical evidence) because it suggests that muscle strengthening and yoga, in addition to being effective in the treatment of depression, are activities likely to be well accepted by patients.
This increases the chances of successful treatment.
Journalist
May 21, 2024, at 3:10 p.m.
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