Research published in the British Medical Journal suggests that adding a
physical activity intervention to usual care did not reduce symptoms of
depression more than usual care alone.
This contrasts with current clinical guidance which recommends exercise to
help those suffering from the mental illness, which affects one in six
adults in Britain at any one time.
To carry out the study researchers recruited 361 patients aged 18 to 69 years
who had recently been diagnosed with depression. Trial participants were then split into two groups to receive either the
physical activity intervention in addition to usual care, or usual care on
its own and were followed up for 12 months to assess any change in their
symptoms.
But the study found that adding exercise failed to alleviate symptoms of
depression more than usual care alone, only increasing levels of physical
activity.
Source - Telegraph
Source - Telegraph
