| Treating Depression With Exercise | |
~ Marian Eure RN
|
Are you feeling blue, down, depressed? Are you sleeping more than usual, or having a hard time getting to sleep then dragging from exhaustion the next day? Do you have a hard time concentrating on the most mundane tasks, or find it hard to initiate any activity? Do your eyes tear at the drop of a hat? If you have answered yes to any or all of these questions, you may be depressed. These are all symptoms of depression and indicate a need for intervention. But what kind of intervention is best?
A report in the British Journal of Sports Medicine suggests that aerobic exercise can help to lift depression and this pilot study also suggests that it may work faster than antidepressant drugs in treating depression.
The authors of the study caution that this was a small study with only twelve participants and the study did not follow the participants for a long period. Nonetheless, they are encouraged with the results and may garner further study, especially for those for whom drug treatment was not effective or is not appropriate for health reasons.
All twelve subjects had been diagnosed with severe depression that had lasted an average of nine months. They exercised by walking on a treadmill for thirty minutes every day. The rate and intensity were increased during the study as the participants tolerated it.
The severity of depression for each person was measured at the start and end of the study. The participants also completed a self-evaluation of their mood at the beginning, middle and end of the study.
Of the twelve participants in the study, six were substantially less depressed, while two were slightly less depressed. The remaining four had depressive symptoms that remained the same.
This study is encouraging for both those seniors who suffer from depression, and for the health care professionals who are treating them. It's estimated that 15% of those over the age of 65 suffer from some form of depression. The rate of suicide among seniors is higher than in any other age group. Complicating these statistics is the fact that many seniors also suffer from a higher variety of medical conditions and take more medications than any other age group. Some antidepressant medications may be contraindicated or less effective because of these pre-existing conditions or medications. For all but a few, aerobic exercises is an appropriate and safe form of therapy. Additionally the rapid response to exercise for these subjects is also encouraging as antidepressant medications normally take 2 to 4 weeks to work. These medications are also expensive and may not always be covered by insurance. Aerobic exercise such as walking is inexpensive and readily available to most people, with the only necessary equipment being comfortable walking shoes.
If this long dreary winter, the death of a spouse or some other loss in your life is getting you down, perhaps the best thing you can do is take a hike. It could save your life.
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