How Does Exercise Improve Mental Health? The Facts You Need to Know
Regular exercise reduces the risk of a variety of debilitating and life-threatening diseases, from stroke, to diabetes, to cardiovascular disease. However, its impact on mental health remains somewhat nebulous.
The evidence increasingly shows, however, that exercise not only improves physical fitness, it may also enhance emotional health. People who exercise regularly typically do so because it gives them a sense of wellbeing — invigorating them throughout the day, improving quality of their sleep, and honing their memory.
People who exercise generally feel more optimistic and comfortable with themselves, taking problems in their stride. A growing body of scientific research indicates that regular exercise can be a powerful antidote to a variety of common mental health disorders.
Here is what some recent research has to say about exercise and mental health:
Impact of Exercise on Depression
Depression is a major cause of disability around the world. In 2018, The Lancet Psychiatry medical journal published a study surveying 1.2 million Americans. Researchers found that people who exercise routinely experience an average of 1.5 fewer days per month of poor mental health compared with individuals who don’t work out.
The study, the largest observational study of its kind, revealed that team sports, aerobics, cycling, and gym workouts all led to the biggest reductions in mental health problems. The research further discovered that more exercise was not necessarily better. Individuals exercising for three to five 45-minute exercise sessions a week achieved the largest advantages.
Exercise could play an integral role in alleviating the problem, decreasing the health burden on individuals irrespective of their age, gender, race, education level, or household income. Dr. Chekroud, one of the study’s investigators and an assistant professor of psychiatry at Yale University, underlines the growing need to improve mental health through global public health campaigns.
The study published by The Lancet revealed that the type, duration, and frequency of exercise sessions did impact their effectiveness in terms of improving mental health. Dr. Chekroud indicated that he and his fellow researchers will utilize the information they gathered to personalize exercise recommendations, matching people with tailormade exercise regimes designed to optimize their mental health.
And even in the absence of personalized exercise, just get it moving it may be enough. Studies show that exercise can be as effective in treating moderate and mild depression as taking medication. A recent Harvard study suggested that simply by walking for one hour or running for 15 minutes every day, we could all reduce our risk of developing major depression by around 26 percent.
The Impact of Exercise on Stress
Situations that make us feel upset or threatened elicit a stress response from the body’s defense system. These reactions can induce a variety of potentially uncomfortable physical symptoms. Common physical signs of stress include loss of appetite, perspiration, and sleeping problems.
These symptoms are caused by stress hormones. Known as the ‘fight or flight’ response, adrenaline and noradrenaline flood the body, triggering perspiration, increasing heart rate, and raising blood pressure as the body prepares to mount an emergency response. These reactions can also impact behavior, potentially causing us to experience emotions more intensely.
Meanwhile, another stress hormone called cortisol releases sugar and fat, providing a quick boost in energy. However, exercise is a highly effective method of relieving stress. Research reveals that highly active adults typically experience lower stress levels than individuals who lead a more sedentary lifestyle.
The Impact of Exercise on Self-Esteem
Exercise boosts self-esteem, helping us to feel more positive about ourselves, increasing our sense of self-worth, and enhancing our ability to deal with stressors.
Whether achieving a new personal best in the 100-meter sprint or simply finding that we can walk faster for longer, exercise instills a sense of accomplishment. It offers a sense of pride at achieving a particular goal. Strengthening and toning the body also enhances body image, helping to build confidence as we notice improvements in physical appearance.
The Impact of Exercise on Cognition, and Trauma
Exercise has been shown to have a positive impact on cognitive conditions like ADHD, dementia, and age-related memory loss. Being physically active increases the release of hormones in the brain like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. These chemicals are all associated with the ability to focus and pay attention, similar to medications such as Adderall or Ritalin.
As people get older, one study shows that individuals who regularly exercise have a 20 percent to 30 percent lower risk of dementia. In this way, exercise has a protective effect on pre-symptomatic adults who would otherwise be at risk of dementia. Research reveals that physical activity also helps delay decline in cognitive function among those who have already begun to display symptoms.
Exercise has also been shown to be particularly impactful in the treatment of trauma and PTSD. It helps affected individuals to stay in the moment, with skiing, whitewater rafting, mountain biking, rock climbing, and hiking shown to be the most effective forms of exercise in terms of reducing the symptoms of PTSD. Exercise may also help with many of the associated health conditions experienced by people with PTSD, such as heart disease, diabetes, and pain.
