Depression : Exercise As A Treatment For Depression

Million of Americans go through the blues and sad moments from clinical depression each year. Most patients with depression first seek treatment from a therapist or a primary care provider. However, exercise is a developmental behavior intervention that has displayed strong promise in alleviating symptoms of depression. The objective is examine whether physical activity is associated with depression in an average size population based on gender and age. A total of 310 participates ( 123 Male and 184 females and 3 other ) of UO students and other random volunteered to participate. All participants age ranged from 14 to 99, had to completed two self- report questionnaires. Besides answering question on their exercise habits during the past week, also took into account that all participants also completed CES-D questionnaire that determine their depression levels. In the surveyed there was a lower level of depression with more frequent weekly exercise give it a negative correlation. Also with the duration question, showed a significant negative correlation with the levels of depression. The efficiency of exercise in reducing depression cannot be determined because of the small size of participates and the lack of excellent quality research on population with adequate follow up

While the research of Blumenthal et al. (2007) focused on exercise being effective in reducing self-reported depressive symptoms, Diaz and Motta (2008) and Motta, Kuligowski, and Marino (2010) looked at the positive effects of exercise on depression, anxiety and PTSD. The theory of exercise’s positive effect on mental health has heavily been focused on

Depressive persons tend to have a lower amount of physical activity because of their lack of motivation. Depression is found in a variety of people, but is especially prevalent among adolescents .But these findings would support us to conclude that physical fitness is therapeutic psychologically and physiologically in treating depression. Prescribing an appropriate regiment of exercise is shown in this study to decrease symptoms of depression in adolescent females.

Heladóttír, Hallgren, Ekblom, Forsell (2016) sought to find an optimal dosage of exercise to elicit positive responses in those diagnosed with depression using three varying intensities. With frequency and duration kept consistent, 620 participants, including ages 18 to 67, were randomly assigned different treatment groups. These included (1) continuing their usual treatment, (2) light exercise like yoga, (3) moderate aerobic exercise, and (4) vigorous aerobic exercise. The training program lasted for 12 weeks, requiring subjects to exercise 55 minutes 3 times a week. The researchers measured depression severity at baseline and post-treatment while monitoring heart rate during every session using a monitor. Following the conclusion of the study, the results indicated that depression severity decreased in al exercise groups. However, the optimal dosage for exercise prescription remains uncertain. These findings suggest that light exercise, such as yoga, were more beneficial than the other intensities

The term "exercise", has been used interchangeably with “physical activity” (Taylor, 1983). Physical exercise implies a regular, structured, leisure-time pursuit (Salmon, 2001). The overwhelming evidence confirms that exercises contribute to mood improvement (Salmon, 2001). As for the definition of depression, it is a psychological state and mental disorder associated with feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and sometimes loss of interest in interaction with people or the activities that the person like (Landers, 1997).

In the book, Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and The Brain by Dr. John J. Ratey, MD (2008), Ratey discuses how exercise can help treat many mood disorders and how it can help strengthen our brains. This book is divided into ten chapters all with five to ten subsections in them. The chapters include: Welcome to the revolution: A Case Study on Exercise and the brain, Learning, Stress, Anxiety, Depression, Attention Deficit, Addiction, Hormonal Changers, Aging, and the Regimen.

First of all exercise helps benefit mood, and makes you feel happier. According to Neighbond and Brennan exercise "reduces symptoms of moderate depression and enhances psychological fitness."(Brennan 7) "All these negative behaviors were lower among the teens who exercised."(Neighbond 10) Most teens that go to school have problems with depression,

One report published by the Primary Care Companion to Journal Of Clinical Psychiatry in 2004 showed that weight training is just as effective for reducing depression symptoms. The study involved 40 women. Half of the women ran while the other half lifted weights for eight weeks. The results of the study showed that both groups noticed an improvement in their symptoms.

An exercise-based approach to depression treatment should show a large remission rate, of about 40% of patients, after just 16 weeks of physical activity (Blumenthal et al., 2007, p. 8). Along with this, in a study by Blumenthal et al. (2007) published in Psychosomatic Medicine, some study participants experienced a 50% reduction in depression symptoms after just the first week of treatment through physical activity (p. 9). So, in some cases this treatment may be extremely quick in producing results and otherwise will still be effective after just four

According to Butler et al (2008), exercises that need high energy and regular aerobic practices are likely to cut down the depression symptoms at a rapid rate. Further, the authors are of

Yoga isn’t only beneficial to the body but also the mind. Recreational therapists can take advantage of this by applying yoga techniques to improve the mood and reduce feelings of irritability and apathy for individuals with Major Depressive Disorder. Moreover, the participants should have been previously diagnosed with MDD, which according to the DSM-V means they have shown five or more of the following symptoms during the same two weeks and represent a change from previous functioning. The symptoms related to MDD also stated in the DSM- V are: a depressed mood for most of the day, nearly every day, a diminished interest or pleasure in almost all activities, insomnia or hypersomnia, psychomotor agitation, fatigue, feelings of

This report aims to determine the efficacy and benefits of exercise in the management of depression, which is classified by the World Health Organisation as a mood disorder. In order to place exercise therapy into context, conventional methods for treating clinical depression are discussed. A personal meta-analysis is then undertaken, summarising the findings of studies that have explored the clinical significance of physical exercise as an intervention in treating depression. The advantages and disadvantages of such an intervention are described, and

The one research study I wanted to focus on was the “Effects of Exercise on Depression” because I wanted to learn more about exercise helping depression or anxiety, so I performed some extra research. One of the research study site I visited was called, “Exercise for Stress and Anxiety” by the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Another research study site I visited was called, “The Benefits of Exercise for the Clinically Depressed” by Lynette L. Craft and Frank M. Perna. One claim made by the article “Effects of Exercise on Depression” says, “80 male and female volunteers . . . then did aerobics for an hour. That group was most likely to benefit, reporting a reduction in anger, fatigue, and tension (“Effects of Exercise on Depression” 1).” According to this article, after people who suffered from depression exercised, they reported less of their symptoms

They found that an exercise training programme could be an alternative treatment for MDD. Although antidepressants had a more rapid response than exercise, after 16 weeks of exercise the effectiveness in reducing depression was equal to the anti-depressants. A study also found that a single bout of exercise could result in substantial improvements in mood, which shows that it’s not just duration and frequency. However, it may be that the improvement in mood is only temporary (Dimeo et al., 2001). Lawler and Hopker (2001) stated that effectiveness of exercise on depression couldn’t be determined due to lack of quality research based on clinical populations. They also wrote that the explanations of the results may have been that depressed patients who did regular exercise could have got positive feedback from other people and a sense of self worth, which may act as a diversion from negative thoughts. Physical activity was found to be linked with less coexisting depression, which remains the same after controlling for gender, age, and race. The results of the study showed that physical activity is helpful with medical problems, life stressors and quality of sleep (Harris et al., 2006).

Exercise may be one of the most important influences on your overall health to date. While the only benefits that are mainly focused on are the physical benefits, significant psychological impacts can also be linked to exercise. Although some of these benefits aren’t viewed with much enthusiasm, studies have proven that exercise can actually improve one’s quality of life greatly by increasing not only their physical health but their mental health as well. It is because of this that exercise is a