A new study by researchers at the University of South Australia (UniSA) suggests that regular exercise may be more effective than medications for treating mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.

It is already widely known that physical activity helps improve mental health, but it was never adopted as the main treatment for these conditions. Survey results are not conclusive and seeking a psychology or psychiatrist is still the best option for those looking to treat anxiety and depression.

Researchers now want exercise to be a key approach to depression management, as the study shows that physical activity is 1.5 times more effective than major drugs or even counseling.

The study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, used 97 reviews, 1,039 trials and 128,119 participants. Results showed that exercise improved symptoms of depression, anxiety, and suffering.

A recent review of the study showed that 12 weeks or less of exercise was most effective at reducing symptoms of mental health problems, suggesting that even small changes for a short period of time can have beneficial effects.

While any form of physical exercise can help fight the symptoms of mental health problems, those that show the best results in controlling depression and anxiety are those with the highest intensity.

More intense activities like jogging brought better results.

Those who benefited most from the study include people with depression, people with HIV, those with kidney disease, pregnant women and those in the postpartum period. Even healthy individuals benefited.

UniSA professor and senior researcher Carol Maher says the study is the first to examine the effects of any type of physical activity on symptoms of depression and anxiety in adults.

“Reviewing these studies as a whole is an effective way for clinicians to easily understand the evidence supporting physical activity in the treatment of mental health disorders.”

Previous research has shown that exercise positively affects mental health, in addition to other health benefits such as reducing cancer growth, preventing cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and more.

Source: Tec Mundo

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I'm Blaine Morgan, an experienced journalist and writer with over 8 years of experience in the tech industry. My expertise lies in writing about technology news and trends, covering everything from cutting-edge gadgets to emerging software developments. I've written for several leading publications including Gadget Onus where I am an author.

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