Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-rcrh6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T06:52:26.608Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Habitual physical activity and the risk for depressive and anxiety disorders among older men and women

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 September 2010

Julie A. Pasco ,
Lana J. Williams ,
Felice N. Jacka ,
Margaret J. Henry ,
Carolyn E. Coulson ,
Sharon L. Brennan ,
Eva Leslie ,
Geoffrey C. Nicholson ,
Mark A. Kotowicz  and
Michael Berk
Julie A. Pasco*
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Lana J. Williams
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Felice N. Jacka
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Margaret J. Henry
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Carolyn E. Coulson
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Sharon L. Brennan
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Eva Leslie
Affiliation:
School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
Geoffrey C. Nicholson
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Mark A. Kotowicz
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
Michael Berk
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, Geelong, Australia
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Associate Professor Julie A. Pasco, Epidemiology and Biostatistics Unit, Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences: Barwon Health, The University of Melbourne, PO Box 281, Geelong 3220, Australia. Phone: +61 3 5226 7393; Fax: +61 3 5246 5165. Email: [email protected].
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background: Regular physical activity is generally associated with psychological well-being, although there are relatively few prospective studies in older adults. We investigated habitual physical activity as a risk factor for de novo depressive and anxiety disorders in older men and women from the general population.

Methods: In this nested case-control study, subjects aged 60 years or more were identified from randomly selected cohorts being followed prospectively in the Geelong Osteoporosis Study. Cases were individuals with incident depressive or anxiety disorders, diagnosed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR (SCID-I/NP); controls had no history of these disorders. Habitual physical activity, measured using a validated questionnaire, and other exposures were documented at baseline, approximately four years prior to psychiatric interviews. Those with depressive or anxiety disorders that pre-dated baseline were excluded.

Results: Of 547 eligible subjects, 14 developed de novo depressive or anxiety disorders and were classified as cases; 533 controls remained free of disease. Physical activity was protective against the likelihood of depressive and anxiety disorders; OR = 0.55 (95% CI 0.32–0.94), p = 0.03; each standard deviation increase in the transformed physical activity score was associated with an approximate halving in the likelihood of developing depressive or anxiety disorders. Leisure-time physical activity contributed substantially to the overall physical activity score. Age, gender, smoking, alcohol consumption, weight and socioeconomic status did not substantially confound the association.

Conclusion: This study provides evidence consistent with the notion that higher levels of habitual physical activity are protective against the subsequent risk of development of de novo depressive and anxiety disorders.

Keywords

anxietydepressionepidemiologyphysical activityrisk factors
Type
Research Article
Information
International Psychogeriatrics , Volume 23 , Issue 2 , March 2011 , pp. 292 - 298
Copyright
Copyright © International Psychogeriatric Association 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Berk, M. (2007). Should we be targeting exercise as a routine mental health intervention? Acta Neuropsychiatrica, 19, 217–218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berk, M. et al. (2007). Vitamin D deficiency may play a role in depression. Medical Hypotheses, 69, 1316–1319.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Berk, M., Jacka, F. N., Williams, L. J., Ng, F., Dodd, S. and Pasco, J. A. (2008). Is this D vitamin to worry about? Vitamin D insufficiency in an inpatient sample. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 42, 874–878.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Booth, F. W., Gordon, S. E., Carlson, C. J. and Hamilton, M. T. (2000). Waging war on modern chronic diseases: primary prevention through exercise biology. Journal of Applied Physiology, 88, 774–787.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, W. J., Ford, J. H., Burton, N. W., Marshall, A. L. and Dobson, A. J. (2005). Prospective study of physical activity and depressive symptoms in middle-aged women. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 29, 265–272.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carlsohn, A., Rohn, S., Bittmann, F., Raila, J., Mayer, F. and Schweigert, F. J. (2008). Exercise increases the plasma antioxidant capacity of adolescent athletes. Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, 53, 96–103.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Conn, V. S. (2010). Depressive symptom outcomes of physical activity interventions: meta-analysis findings. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 39, 128–138.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cooper-Patrick, L., Ford, D. E., Mead, L. A., Chang, P. P. and Klag, M. J. (1997). Exercise and depression in midlife: a prospective study. American Journal of Public Health, 87, 670–673.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cuijpers, P., van Straten, A. and Warmerdam, L. (2007). Behavioral activation treatments of depression: a meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 27, 318–326.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cuijpers, P., van Straten, A., Smit, F., Mihalopoulos, C. and Beekman, A. (2008). Preventing the onset of depressive disorders: a meta-analytic review of psychological interventions. American Journal of Psychiatry, 165, 1272–1280.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de Moor, M. H., Boomsma, D. I., Stubbe, J. H., Willemsen, G. and de Geus, E. J. (2008). Testing causality in the association between regular exercise and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 65, 897–905.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dishman, R. K., Renner, K. J., White-Welkley, J. E., Burke, K. A. and Bunnell, B. N. (2000). Treadmill exercise training augments brain norepinephrine response to familiar and novel stress. Brain Research Bulletin, 52, 337–342.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Farmer, M. E., Locke, B. Z., Moscicki, E. K., Dannenberg, A. L., Larson, D. B. and Radloff, L. S. (1988). Physical activity and depressive symptoms: the NHANES I Epidemiologic Follow-up Study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 128, 1340–1351.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Greenwood, B. N. et al. (2005). Wheel running alters serotonin (5-HT) transporter, 5-HT1A, 5-HT1B, and alpha 1b-adrenergic receptor mRNA in the rat raphe nuclei. Biological Psychiatry, 57, 559–568.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Greist, J. H., Klein, M. H., Eischens, R. R., Faris, J., Gurman, A. S. and Morgan, W. P. (1979). Running as treatment for depression. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 20, 41–54.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jacka, F. N., Pasco, J. A., Dodd, S., Williams, L. J., Nicholson, G. C. and Berk, M. (2008). Lower levels of physical activity in childhood predict adult depression. Journal of Affective Disorders, 107 (Suppl. 1), S58–59.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jacka, F. N. et al. (2010). Association of Western and traditional diets with depression and anxiety in women. American Journal of Psychiatry, 167, 305–311.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Janssen, J., Beekman, A. T., Comijs, H. C., Deeg, D. J. and Heeren, T. J. (2006). Late-life depression: the differences between early- and late-onset illness in a community-based sample. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 21, 86–93.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kramer, H. F. and Goodyear, L. J. (2007). Exercise, MAPK, and NF-kappaB signaling in skeletal muscle. Journal of Applied Physiology, 103, 388–395.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kritz-Silverstein, D., Barrett-Connor, E. and Corbeau, C. (2001). Cross-sectional and prospective study of exercise and depressed mood in the elderly: the Rancho Bernardo study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 153, 596–603.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lampinen, P., Heikkinen, R. L. and Ruoppila, I. (2000). Changes in intensity of physical exercise as predictors of depressive symptoms among older adults: an eight-year follow-up. Preventive Medicine, 30, 371–380.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lennox, S. S., Bedell, J. R. and Stone, A. A. (1990). The effect of exercise on normal mood. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 34, 629–636.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maes, M., Galecki, P., Chang, Y. S. and Berk, M. (2010). A review on the oxidative and nitrosative stress (O&NS) pathways in major depression and their possible contribution to the (neuro)degenerative processes in that illness. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry. E-published ahead of print, doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2010.05.004.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Molteni, R., Wu, A., Vaynman, S., Ying, Z., Barnard, R. J. and Gomez-Pinilla, F. (2004). Exercise reverses the harmful effects of consumption of a high-fat diet on synaptic and behavioral plasticity associated to the action of brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Neuroscience, 123, 429–440.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morgan, K. and Bath, P. A. (1998). Customary physical activity and psychological wellbeing: a longitudinal study. Age and Ageing, 27 (Suppl. 3), 35–40.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ng, F., Dodd, S., Jacka, F., Leslie, E. and Berk, M. (2007). Effects of a walking program in the psychiatric in-patient treatment setting: a cohort study. Health Promotion Journal of Australia, 18, 39–42.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Paffenbarger, R. S. Jr., Lee, I. M. and Leung, R. (1994). Physical activity and personal characteristics associated with depression and suicide in American college men. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica Supplementum, 377, 16–22.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pasco, J. A., Sanders, K. M., Henry, M. J., Nicholson, G. C., Seeman, E. and Kotowicz, M. A. (2000). Calcium intakes among Australian women: Geelong Osteoporosis Study. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Medicine, 30, 21–27.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sachdev, S. and Davies, K. J. (2008). Production, detection, and adaptive responses to free radicals in exercise. Free Radical Biology and Medicine, 44, 215–223.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sanchez-Villegas, A., Ara, I., Guillen-Grima, F., Bes-Rastrollo, M., Varo-Cenarruzabeitia, J. J. and Martinez-Gonzalez, M. A. (2008). Physical activity, sedentary index, and mental disorders in the SUN cohort study. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 40, 827–834.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stranahan, A. M., Lee, K. and Mattson, M. P. (2008). Central mechanisms of HPA axis regulation by voluntary exercise. Neuromolecular Medicine, 10, 118–127.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Strawbridge, W. J., Deleger, S., Roberts, R. E. and Kaplan, G. A. (2002). Physical activity reduces the risk of subsequent depression for older adults. American Journal of Epidemiology, 156, 328–334.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van Gool, C. H., Kempen, G. I., Penninx, B. W., Deeg, D. J., Beekman, A. T. and van Eijk, J. T. (2003). Relationship between changes in depressive symptoms and unhealthy lifestyles in late middle aged and older persons: results from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. Age and Ageing, 32, 81–87.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van Praag, H. (2008). Neurogenesis and exercise: past and future directions. Neuromolecular Medicine, 10, 128–140.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Voorrips, L. E., Ravelli, A. C. J., Dongelmans, P. C. A., Deurenberg, P. and van Staveren, W. A. (1991). A physical activity questionnaire for the elderly. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 23, 974–979.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Weyerer, S. (1992). Physical inactivity and depression in the community: evidence from the Upper Bavarian Field Study. International Journal of Sports Medicine, 13, 492–496.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wiles, N. J., Haase, A. M., Gallacher, J., Lawlor, D. A., and Lewis, G. (2007). Physical activity and common mental disorder: results from the Caerphilly study. American Journal of Epidemiology, 165, 946–954.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Williams, L. J. et al. (2010). The prevalence of mood and anxiety disorders in Australian women. Australasian Psychiatry, 18, 250–255.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wise, L. A., Adams-Campbell, L. L., Palmer, J. R. and Rosenberg, L. (2006). Leisure time physical activity in relation to depressive symptoms in the Black Women's Health Study. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 32, 68–76.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wyshak, G. (2001). Women's college physical activity and self-reports of physician-diagnosed depression and of current symptoms of psychiatric distress. Journal of Women's Health and Gender-Based Medicine, 10, 363–370.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed