Exercise as a catalyst

Anxiety and depression after acute myocardial infarction: an 18-month follow-up study with repeated measures and comparison with a reference population

“…Our results are consistent with another study in which the best predictor of distress at 12 months was distress at 3 months and where distressed patients exercised less and smoked more than nondistressed patients [12]. Positive psychological effects, such as reductions in anxiety and depression from increased physical activity, have been reported in earlier research for both cardiac and other populations, although the mechanisms explaining this effect have been less clearly identified [35,37]. There is some evidence that nicotine (smoking) is a self-administered antidepressant for some patients [38].…”