Exercise and mental health literacy in an Australian adult population

Abstract

Background: Exercise is a well-established treatment for depression, and its use in clinical care is supported by consumers and clinicians. However, whether public health messages regarding the benefits of exercise for depression have translated to public knowledge remains unknown.This study aims to examine the community's mental health literacy, and views regarding exercise delivery for people with depression. Methods:A vignette was presented as part of the telephone-based 2017 National Social Survey (n = 1,265). Interviewees identified what (if anything) was wrong with the person described, who they should seek help from, whether exercise might be beneficial, and how exercise should be delivered for the person described in the vignette. Results are reported using descriptive statistics.Results: From 1,265 respondents (response rate = 24%, n = 598 males, mean age 54.7 years [range 18-101]), almost two-thirds correctly identified the condition described in the vignette as depression. There was widespread support for seeking help from a general practitioner. Exercise was well supported in the treatment of the person described in the vignette, with general practitioners and accredited exercise physiologists highlighted as persons to consult regarding exercise. Views regarding the type of program were consistent with current best practice recommendations.Conclusions: Australian adults demonstrate a high level of exercise and mental health literacy. The high level of support for accredited exercise physiologists is evidence of the effectiveness of health promotion campaigns from peak exercise professional agencies. K E Y W O R D Saffective disorders, depression, depressive illness, physical activity, physical health, vignette

Health Literacy Studies Conducted in Australia: A Scoping Review

“…Out of all the 27 studies, five studies were carried out in different areas of Victoria [86,88,92,98,99], five in New South Wales [83,89,91,101,103], five in Queensland [76,93,95,100,104], three studies in Western Australia [81,85,90], two studies in South Australia and Australia Capital Territory respectively [77,78,80,94], and one study each in Tasmania and the Northern Territory, and one study recruited participants from all of the states and territories except Tasmania [70,72,73]. One study recruited participants from across Australia [79], and one study was carried out among Indigenous Australians [87].…”

“…The present review also brought forth the time sequence of all the included studies related with health literacy. Three studies were published before the years 2010 [77,79,87] and 25 studies were published between 2010 and 2018 [76,78,80,81,83,85,86,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,95,96,97,98,99,100,101,102,103,104]. The spatial and temporal sequence demonstrates that health literacy research is Australia is widespread and most studies have been published since 2010.…”

“…Within the research studies included in this scoping review, there was a particular focus on mental health which showed a rise in levels of mental HL in rural and urban community. This was evident in the following findings: better understanding and prevention of mental health issues; approval of seeking help from mental health care providers; preferring to access online sources of information; and consulting doctor, or talking to peers or family members about a mental health issue [78,79,80,85,97,101,104]. However, lack of awareness regarding mental health was profound in Aboriginal men who lived alone which was related to not discussing problem within the community, and use of technical language by the health care providers [78].…”

“…A number of factors play roles in weakening the findings of prevailing research studies, such as: (1) Very few studies examined the underpinnings of complex causal mechanisms which influence the relationship between HL and health outcomes [110,111]; (2) Absence of instruments targeting HL and its domains; (3) Significant dearth of studies evaluating current strategies and technologies aimed to improve HL; and (4) A lack of research studies directly analyzing health numeracy. The knowledge deficiency highlighted in HL studies [77,90,96], problems of present health care system [97,98,100], and inadequate levels of health numeracy [76,80,88,91,104] must be taken into consideration and efforts should be made to increase HL knowledge of the consumers as shown by the studies [78,79,80,85,97,101].…”

What Does the Public Know About Varying Depression Severity?–Results of a Population Survey

“…Concerning depression literacy, international literature has shown an increase in the correct identification of depression over time. Recent population studies using vignettes elicited recognition rates between 55 and 79% [7,[9][10][11]. When asked for their assessment of treatability or prognosis of disease, respondents stated that they think depressive disorders can be treated relatively well and that they generally have a good prognosis [9,12,13].…”