Aerobic exercise may be most effective for depression and anxiety, say researchers
Aerobic exercise – including running, swimming and dancing – may be the most effective way to relieve symptoms of depression and anxiety, researchers have concluded.
A review of existing evidence published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that all exercise programmes had a positive impact on mitigating symptoms of depression and anxiety but aerobic exercise had the biggest impact.
The analysis of evidence from 57,930 participants with depression who had taken part in randomised controlled trials comparing exercise with either another type of activity, or a placebo, or no active intervention. Analysis was also done on another 19,368 participants with anxiety.
They found that supervised and group exercise may be best for reducing depression but shorter (up to 8 weeks) lower intensity exercise may be best for relieving anxiety.
Their findings reiterated the conclusion of a recent Cochrane review which had concluded that exercise may have similar benefits in treating depression as therapy.
The latest research specifically set out to look at how well exercise might work at different ages, frequency, and intensities and how the intervention was organised.
Exercise interventions studied included aerobic, resistance work such as strength training, mind–body, such as yoga, tai-chi, and qigong, or a mix.
Overall exercise was found to have a medium sized effect on depression symptoms and a small to medium sized effect on anxiety symptoms, with the most substantial effects found for young adults aged 18-30 years and women who had recently given birth.
While all forms of exercise were associated with positive effects, aerobic, group-based and supervised formats were the most effective for relieving depression symptoms.
Aerobic, resistance, mind–body and a mix of different exercise formats had a medium sized impact on the relief of anxiety symptoms, the team reported.
They concluded: ‘Group and supervised formats gave the most substantial benefits, underscoring the importance of social factors in mental health interventions.
‘With evidence that different characteristics of exercise appear to impact depression and anxiety at varying magnitudes, tailored exercise programmes must be prescribed.’
Dr Brendon Stubbs, NIHR clinical lecturer at King’s College London, said the review confirmed that almost forms of physical activity and structured exercise are associated with meaningful improvements in depression and anxiety symptoms, across the lifespan and in both clinical and subclinical populations.
But he stressed the research did not include head-to-head trials against pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy.
He added: ‘The key message to the public or people with anxiety or depression is that exercise is a credible, evidence-based option that can sit alongside medication and talking therapies, and in some cases be an effective first step, particularly when tailored to individual preferences and circumstances.’
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