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​Research​​​​

• Exercise is a magic drug for many people with depression and anxiety disorders, and it should be more widely prescribed by mental healthcare providers, according to researchers who analyzed the results of numerous published studies" (Science daily 4/5/2010)

• Physical fitness among children and adults may protect against developing depressive symptoms, anxiety, and attention deficit disorder, according to a study published on Monday in JAMA Pediatrics" (The New York Times, 4/29/2024)

• In Britain, doctors now use exercise as a first line treatment for depression, but it is vastly underutilized in the United States. Spark & John J. Ratey

• Exercise works as least as well as a popular prescription drug in treating clinical depression and keeping the condition from returning, researchers say” (The New York Times, 10/21/2011)

• A major strength of exercise therapy is that it is perhaps the only treatment that consistently offers immediate mood elevating and anxiolytic effects following each workout(Conquering Depression and Anxiety Through Exercise, Keith Johnsgard, 2004

• Effects of exercise on anxiety and psychiatric comorbidities in children with autism spectrum disorder: a systematic reviewand meta-analysis: Exercise, particularly aerobic interventions, serves as a potent non-pharmacological strategy for the management of anxiety and affective dysregulation in children with ASD. These findings support the integration of aerobic exercise into clinical treatment plans to improve emotional wellbeing.

• A multilevel meta-analysis of the effects of exercise interventions on inhibitory control in children with ADHD:  Exercise interventions may produce medium-to-large improvements in inhibitory control among children with ADHD. Although robust across intervention parameters, overall evidence certainty remains low due to methodological limitations. High-quality studies are needed to confirm these findings.

 

Additional Resources

• ​The Joy of Movement by Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D.

• Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by John J. Ratey. MD

• Foundations of Exercise and Mental Health by Larry M. Leith, Ph.D.

• ​Working it Out: Using Exercise in Psychotherapy  by Kate Hays. Ph.D.

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