Q. Can exercise help treat depression?
A.
Ever have one of those days
where you’re feeling down?
You know something
isn’t right. You’re sad or
anxious. You’re not sleeping well.
Maybe you don’t have any energy,
you’ve lost interest in things you
used to enjoy. Sound familiar?
A day or two of feeling down doesn’t
mean you’re depressed. But if
Tak
you feel down for more than two
e
depression. And you’re not alone.
Millions of people struggle with
depression. Maybe it’s the daily
it’s something bigger like the death
of a loved one, job loss, divorce, or
depressed for no apparent reason.
Common factors linked
to depression include:
Personal problems
Substance abuse
What can you do about it?
to help people with depression.
help, too. About 1 in 9 people in the
1
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t t he Blues?
G o
cise
aD
ose of E x
er
But there’s at least one other way
to combat depression without the
A recent study followed 126 people
with major depression.2 These people
didn’t help. So instead of medicine,
they exercised more. They took
home for 12 weeks. The result:
of the group beat depression.
Feeling “blue”? One way to help
yourself right now is to be more
health can improve, right along
with your physical health.
Regular exercise, such as brisk
walking, can help. How long should
Aim for 30 minutes a day. But if you
don’t have 30 minutes, even smaller
Boost your mental health
Improve your mood
Help you feel good about
yourself and how you are taking
Prevent many serious health
problems including heart
disease, cancer, diabetes,
and worsening depression
Need a dose of something to improve
your mood? Exercise is medicine.3
References
1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
(2016). Selected prescription drug classes
used in the past 30 days, by sex and age:
United States, selected years 1988–1994
through 2011–2014. From: https://www.
cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/2016/080.pdf
2. Trivedi, M.H., et al. (2011). Exercise as an
augmentation treatment for nonremitted
major depressive disorder: a randomized,
parallel dose comparison. Journal of Clinical
Psychiatry, 72(5):677-684. From: https://
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21658349
3. American College of Sports Medicine.
(2017). Exercise is medicine. From: http://
www.exerciseismedicine.org/