Exercise as an antidepressant: exploring its therapeutic potential

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the prevalence of depressive disorders worldwide, requiring alternative treatments beyond medication and psychotherapy. Exercise has positive effects on the brain; therefore, it has emerged as a promising therapeutic option for individuals with depression. Considerable research involving humans and animals offers compelling evidence to support the mental health benefits of physical activity or exercise mediated by the regulation of complex theoretical paradigms. However, challenges such as conducting long-term follow-up assessments and considering individual characteristics remain in human studies despite extensive efforts. While animal studies provide valuable insights into the potential benefits of exercise and its impact on outcomes related to depression and anxiety in rodents exposed to different stress paradigms, translating the findings to humans requires careful evaluation. More research is needed to establish precise exercise prescription guidelines and to better understand the complex relationship between exercise and depressive disorders. Therefore, this concise review explores the evidence supporting exercise intervention as an antidepressant treatment and its underlying mechanisms.

Augmented-reality-based multi-person exercise has more beneficial effects on mood state and oxytocin secretion than standard solitary exercise

“…Firstly, the current study exclusively involved healthy participants. Given that standard exercise has been shown to prevent and treat psychiatric disorders (Deslandes et al, 2009; Hwang et al, 2023; Laird et al, 2023; Viana and de Lira, 2020), there is a possibility that the current Ex+AR approach could serve as a more efficient therapy for such disorders compared to standard exercise alone. Future studies should explore this possibility Secondly, our investigation focused solely on the acute effects of a 10-minute regimen.…”

“…Numerous studies have underscored the advantageous impacts of exercise on both physiological and psychological well-being. Consequently, exercise is viewed as a therapeutic intervention not only for metabolic disturbances but also for mental disorders (Deslandes et al, 2009; Hwang et al, 2023; Laird et al, 2023; Viana and de Lira, 2020). The prevalence of mental disorders has been on the rise in recent decades (ten Have et al, 2023), with children and young adults under 24 years of age being particularly affected by the adverse mental health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic (Kauhanen et al, 2023).…”

“…Oxytocin levels are not only upregulated by social interaction but also by exercise. Exercise offers numerous benefits, including disease prevention and the treatment of psychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety disorders (Deslandes et al, 2009; Hwang et al, 2023; Laird et al, 2023; Viana & de Lira, 2020). Even light-intensity acute exercise has been shown to enhance mood and prosocial skills in healthy individuals (Basso & Suzuki, 2017; Edwards et al, 2017; Ludyga et al, 2022).…”

The Role of Exercise to Improve Physiological, Physical and Psychological Health Outcome in Idiopathic Inflammatory Myopathies (IIM)

“… 79 This is not surprising, as regular physical activity and exercise is an effective treatment for mild to moderate depression in populations. 122 Furthermore, there are no studies exploring efficacy of water-based exercise or telerehabilitation in adult patients with IIM, indicating that these are important areas for future research.…”

Tjelesna aktivnost i simptomi depresije i anksioznosti kod djece i adolescenata

“…There are many pathways and mechanisms that can be used to explain an impact of physical activity on one's mental health and/or symptoms of depression and anxiety (Hwang et al, 2023). One of the most well-known is the biochemical mechanism, which explores the influence of physical activity on hormones and neurotransmitters.…”