Exercise and Depression in Youths

Depression disorder is a prevalent mental illness among young individuals, and finding effective interventions is crucial. A recent network meta-analysis, published in Frontiers in Psychiatry, has shed light on the positive potential of exercise in treating and preventing depression in youths.

The comprehensive study, which included data from 58 studies and 4,887 participants across ten countries, aimed to determine the best type of exercise for managing depression in young individuals. Researchers conducted a thorough search of multiple databases and evaluated the risk of bias in the included studies.

The findings revealed significant benefits of exercise in reducing anxiety in both depressed and non-depressed youths compared to usual care. Specifically, the following types of exercise showed significant efficacy in treating and preventing depression when compared to usual care:

• Resistance exercise
• Aerobic exercise
• Mixed exercise
• Mind-body exercise

Resistance exercise emerged as the most effective type of exercise for both treatment and prevention of depression in youths.

According to the surface under the cumulative ranking score (SUCRA) test, resistance exercise ranked highest for the treatment of depression in depressed youths, followed by:

• Aerobic exercise
• Mixed exercise
• Mind-body exercise

Similarly, for the prevention of depression in non-depressed youths, resistance exercise ranked highest, followed by:

• Mixed exercise
• Aerobic exercise

Subgroup analyses further highlighted that exercise interventions with a frequency of 3-4 times per week, lasting 30-60 minutes per session, and extending beyond 6 weeks yielded the most positive outcomes for depression.

These findings have significant implications for clinical practice, emphasizing the potential of exercise as a viable intervention for improving depression and anxiety in young individuals. The study underscores the importance of tailoring exercise programs to optimize treatment and prevention efforts. Implementing resistance exercise, with a recommended frequency, duration, and length, showed the most comprehensive effect in managing depression among youths.

While these findings are promising, researchers stress the need for additional head-to-head studies to confirm and strengthen the evidence base. Nevertheless, the study offers valuable insights into the role of exercise as a potential treatment and preventative measure for depression in young people.

Source

Zhang, Y., Li, G., Liu, C., Guan, J., Zhang, Y., & Shi, Z. (2023). Comparing the efficacy of different types of exercise for the treatment and prevention of depression in youths: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. In Frontiers in Psychiatry (Vol. 14). Frontiers Media SA. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1199510