Exercise and Mental Health

Body movement is a fundamental component of human health, evolution, and
development. Like many other mammals, humans are made to move, hunt, and run away
from predators. But at the same time, humans are also evolved to conserve energy
through limiting movement when the opportunity is available. Physical activity is
defined here as any type of body movement that uses up energy. Opportunities for
physical activity in the modern world are becoming less all the time. The modern
world offers an environment where there are ample opportunities to conserve energy.
Cars are the dominant mode of transportation. Most jobs are office-based and there
are unlimited temptations for sedentary forms of recreation such as tablets,
computers, TV, and video games. Only about half of the adult population in
Australia meet the core physical activity guideline that is set to two and a half
hours of moderate to vigorous physical activity a week. And less than 2 in 10
adults meet the full guideline that also includes participation in strength
exercise. In other words, the modern world has removed the need to move in our
daily life. Instead, we try to compensate through designer movement such a sports
and gym-based activities known as exercise. However, the number of people
exercising in the population is disappointingly low because of time, cost, physical
conditioning, and skill barriers. Clinical exercise programs aimed at treating or
managing chronic conditions are not standard practice and it can be difficult to
implement due to low participation. Incidental activity, that is everyday physical
activity, may be more feasible for many people. We will now see how physical
activity and exercise relate to mental health and well-being. Almost half of the
Australian population has experienced some form of mental disorder at some point in
their lifetime. The commonest mental health conditions are depression and anxiety.
In the World Health Organization recognizes depressive disorders as the leading
cause of disability worldwide. Additionally, developing and implementing physical
activity and exercise interventions in these population groups is a big challenge
because of the existence of multiple physical comorbidities that may limit capacity
to exercise and the relatively low priority assigned to a healthy lifestyle by
these population groups. There is a lot of overlap between major lifestyle diseases
and mental health conditions. For example, between 31 and 45% of patients with
coronary artery disease suffer from clinical depression while people with
cardiovascular disease, in general, are two to three times more likely to develop
depression compared with the general population. This can trigger a vicious circle
whereby mental and physical health problems exacerbate each other and both jointly
reduce the ability to be physically active leading to worsening health. Physical
activity is recommended as an evidence-based treatment for depression by health
authorities. Several systematic reviews have highlighted the potential physical
activity for the treatment of mild to moderate depression. The value of exercise
for more severe forms of depression is less clear, perhaps due to the chicken and
egg effect where depression causes reduced motivation for activity and less
activity makes the depression worse. For mental health as well as physical health
conditions, an ounce of prevention worth a pound of cure. It is far more cost-
effective to prevent the onset of disease rather than seeking to cure them. It is
not clear what types of exercise and physical activity are most effective. Most
studies have tested aerobic types like walking and running, and fewer studies have
tested resistance training or activities like yoga and Tai Chi. All types seem to
work reasonably well. The ideal type of physical activity is perhaps less important
than the long term participation in physical activity. Unfortunately, the mental
health benefits of physical activity are temporary. Sustained participation in
exercise programs among mental health patients is very challenging. We do not know
the best way to help patients to become and remain physically active in their
everyday life or stick to an exercise program. Social isolation and loneliness
increase the risk for depression and people suffering from depression are less
likely to have strong social networks. Therefore, physical activity and exercise
programs that involve group interaction may be a promising option. We prefer to
design a program that suits the preferences and circumstances of each individual as
this will increase the chances of longterm adherence. This has been a brief
introduction to physical activity in mental health. We saw that physical activity
plays a big role in the prevention and management of major mental illness.
Achieving the minimum recommendations of 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous
physical activity per week would be an excellent start for people with stressful
lives who are currently sedentary. Those achieving these recommendations could
strive for 300 minutes per week and more engagement in higher intensity physical
activity. The most important aspect of the physical activity component of a
treatment plan is that recommended activities are enjoyable and achievable, so that
the patient adheres to them in the long term. If moderate to intense activity is
not an option, light incidental activity can also be beneficial. Incidental
activity can be embedded into everyday lifestyles and includes walking or cycling
to work, using stairs instead of lifts, taking active breaks from continuous
sitting, and replacing short to medium car trips with walking or cycling. For
established depression, deliberate scheduling of everyday activities like walking
to the shops and doing other errands are encouraged for overcoming lack of
motivation and fatigue that often come with depression.

Exercise and Mental Health

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Exercise and Mental Health

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Exercise and Mental Health

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Body movement is a fundamental component of human health, evolution, and

You might also like