IS EXERCISE “USELESS” IN TREATING DEPRESSION?

Exercise is a body activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. Regular exercise may help ease depression and anxiety by: Releasing feel-good endorphins, natural cannabis-like brain chemicals (endogenous cannabinoids) and other natural brain chemicals that can enhance your sense of well-being. And it's especially useful for people with mild to moderate depression. Any type of exercise is useful, as long as it suits you and you do enough of it.

Researchers found that sleep problems, a lack of energy, and physical inactivity may lead to a depressed mood and mood changes. Regular exercise can increase self-confidence, improve your mood, help you relax, and lower symptoms of mild depression and anxiety. Exercise can also improve your sleep, which is often disrupted by stress, depression and anxiety.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the most widely prescribed type of antidepressants. They're usually preferred over other antidepressants, as they cause fewer side effects. An overdose is also less likely to be serious. Working out sparks the production of proteins called myOkines, which can help protect your brain from stress-induced depression. So when you stop exercising, you miss out on the influx of these mood boosters,

The research is based on the intervention, called TREAD (Treatment of Depression with physical activity), which is a theory that provides a trained facilitator who gives “individually tailored support and encouragement to engage in physical activity”, write the researchers. You may be overdoing high-intensity exercise such as heavy lifting or high-intensity interval training--HIIT--by cramming too many workouts into a week. These kinds of workouts take more time to recover from and you may end up feeling worn down, depressed, or anxious.


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