There is a growing body of research that shows being physically fit can lower the risk of developing depression, and can also lower the risk of developing heart disease and dying early. “Depression doesn’t exist in a vacuum,” said Trivedi. “Especially for people who are older, depression has a complicated relationship with other major medical diseases.”
Less than half of American adults meet the minimum requirement for physical activity as outlined by the US Department of Health and Human Services. That recommendation is for 150 minutes weekly of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity. That’s about 30 minutes a day, five days a week. Regular exercise and vitamin D supplementation may also help prevent cognitive decline as we age, as shown in two recent studies by The Cooper Institute.
Some examples of aerobic exercise include:
• Brisk walking
• Running or jogging
• Swimming
• Cycling
The Cooper Institute research team, including UT Southwestern Medical Center, evaluated the fitness levels of nearly 18,000 participants who were around 50 years old. Using Medicare administrative data from over 20 years later, the team looked to see if those patients experienced depression, death from cardiovascular disease, or both and what the correlation was to their midlife fitness level.
The results were somewhat surprising in that compared to those with low fitness levels, subjects with the highest levels of fitness at midlife had:
• 16% decrease in risk of depression
• 56% decrease in risk of cardiovascular mortality if depressed
• 61% decrease in risk of cardiovascular mortality if not depressed
“There are clear links between fitness, heart health and brain health,” said Dr. Willis. “It’s never too late to get off the couch to improve fitness at any age.”
"These new insights illustrate the importance of fitness to maintain both physical and psychological health as we age," said Dr. Benjamin Willis, Director of Epidemiology at The Cooper Institute and lead author of the study. “Now we know that the long-term benefits and the connection between mind-body wellness are more significant than we thought. We hope our study will highlight the role of fitness and physical activity in early prevention efforts by physicians in promoting healthy aging.”
“There is enough evidence to show that the effect of low fitness on depression and heart disease is real,” said Dr. Muhmar Trivedi, director of the Center for Depression Research and Clinical Care at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and co-author of the study.