The Impact of Exercise, Smoking, and Diet on Mental Health

This essay explores the impact of exercise, smoking, and diet on mental health. It discusses how exercise can help treat depression and anxiety, how diet and nutrition affect brain development, and how smoking can worsen mental health. Nursing professionals can use this information to educate patients and promote better mental health.

Running head: MENTAL HEALTH
MENTAL HEALTH
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1
MENTAL HEALTH
The impact of mental health on the well-being and health of the person is often
overlooked probably because of less awareness among people of the nation. Good mental
health can be defined as the ability of individuals for maintaining relationships, cope with
stresses, contribution to the communities and enjoying lives (Cooney et al., 2018). Mental
health can be influenced by complex mixtures of different factors. Therefore, this assignment
will show how three important lifestyle factors like exercises, smoking and diet and nutrition
are intricately associated with mental health outcomes in patients. This essay will shed more
light on each of the factors and how they can help or worsen the mental health conditions of
patients.
Exercise not only enhances physical health but it also has profound positive impacts
on the mental health and the sense of well-being in many individuals. Studies show that
exercise can help on treating mild to moderate depression as effectively as that done by the
antidepressant medications but without any side-effects. In addition to cure individuals from
depression, it also prevents them from relapsing. Exercise helps in promoting positive kinds
of changes in the brain that includes neural growth, reduction in inflammation (Mei, 2016). It
also helps in initiating new activity patterns that help on promoting feelings of calm and well-
being. It helps in releasing of the endorphins that are powerful chemicals in the brain and
help on energising spirits and make people feel good. Exercise also helps on treating anxiety
by relieving stress and tensions and helps on boosting physical and mental energy. It also
helps on enhancing the well-being of individuals by the release of endorphins.
Researchers are also of the opinion that exercising regularly can become one of the
easiest as well as the most effective ways for reduction of the symptoms of ADHD. It helps
in the improvement of concentration, memory, motivation as well as mood. Studies suggest
that physical activity can help in the boosting of the important hormones of the brain like the
dopamine, serotonin as well as non-epinephrine levels. All these hormones are responsible

2
MENTAL HEALTH
for affecting focus and attention and hence exercise boosts them all. Therefore, exercises are
seen to work in the similar ways by which Ritalin and Adderall act in patients with ADHD.
Studies also reveal of positive impacts of exercises with Post-Traumatic stress disorders or
PTSD and trauma. Researchers recommend that when individuals can focus on their body
and the way it feels when they exercise have the potential for helping the nervous system to
become “unstuck”. It can help the nervous system to move out of the immobilisation stress
response that characterises PTSD or trauma (De Meur & De Geus, 2018).
Diet and nutrition is one of the most important components that is presently linked
with well-being of mental health and had given rise to a new field of science called the
nutritional psychiatry. Studies have found out links between diet qualities and mental
disorders mainly depression and anxiety in both adults and children. Evidences are also found
where possible role of food allergies are seen to play important role in schizophrenia as well
as bipolar disorders (Owen & Corfe, 2017).
Studies have found that good quality food is important for brain development.
Researchers have opined that when individuals take in real food that nourishes them, it
becomes the protein building blocks, brain tissues, enzymes as well as neurotransmitters that
help in transferring information as well as signals between various parts of the brain and even
the bodies helping in proper mental functioning. Studies also reveal that diet and nutrition
puts the brain into the “growing mode”. Certain nutrients as well as dietary patterns are
often found to be linked with different changes in the brain protein. This helps in increasing
connections between the brain cells (Baskin et al., 2015). A Diet which is rich in nutrients
like omega-3s and zinc helps in boosting these connections. A diet which which is rich in
saturated fats as well as refined sugars have potential negative impacts on the brain proteins.
Studies also reveal that good diet can fill the gut with healthy bacteria which are good for
the brain. These beneficial bacteria keep the body protected from harmful bacteria and protect

3
MENTAL HEALTH
the immune system as well. Therefore, it helps in taming the inflammations in the body.
Some of the germs are also know to make brain-powering B vitamins. A healthy micro-
biome is seen to be associated with decrease in the inflammation and this affects the mood as
well as cognition. A high fat diet of high sugar diet is bad for health of the gut and hence the
brain. Evidences link high sugar diet with worsening of symptoms of schizophrenia (Shellub
et al., 2014).
Smoking is a highly addictive behaviour. It can have negative impacts on the mental
health. People who smoke are twice as likely in experiencing symptoms of anxiety and
depression when comparisons are done with non-smokers. Studies have clearly noted that the
phrase “smoking relieves stress” is actually a myth. In place, smoking develops feelings of
stress and anxiety when the bodies experience nicotine withdrawals (Burns et al., 2016). The
feelings of relief usually occur during smoking as the nicotine cravings get temporarily
satisfied. However, these cravings might return when the nicotine levels decrease. Regular
doses of nicotine can lead to changes in the brain which then lead to various nicotine
withdrawal symptoms when the supply of nicotine decreases. Smoking temporarily can
reduce these symptoms and therefore can reinforce the habit making individuals enter in a
cycle for becoming nicotine dependent.
Researchers are of the opinion that quitting smoking can be found to be associated
with significant reduction in depression, stress as well as anxiety. It also helps in the
improvement in the positive mood as well as psychological quality of life. It also associates
with the enhanced capacities for coping with life stressors. It can also help in socialising
anywhere and not only in places where smoking is permitted (Le Cook et al., 2014).
From the above discussion, it becomes clear that mental health can be successfully
promoted by making important lifestyle changes. Nursing professionals treating mental

4
MENTAL HEALTH
health patients can educate patients about the importance of exercises and how it relates with
overcoming mental health issues. Moreover, nurses can also advise patients to have healthier
diets that align with better brain development and avoid foods that promote inflammation in
the brain. These are effective ways of managing mental health. Quitting smoking also has
beneficial impacts on mental health. These lifestyle interventions can ensure better quality
mental health in all individuals.

5
MENTAL HEALTH
References:
Baskin, R., Hill, B., Jacka, F.N., O'Neil, A. and Skouteris, H., 2015. The association between
diet quality and mental health during the perinatal period. A systematic review. Appetite, 91,
pp.41-47.
Burns, A., Strawbridge, J.D., Clancy, L., Bennett, K. and Doyle, F., 2016. Exploring
Smoking, Mental Health and Smoking-Related Disease in Older Adults. Journal of
Psychosomatic Research, 85, p.58.
Cooney, G., 2018. Exercise and mental health: a complex and challenging relationship. The
Lancet Psychiatry, 5(9), pp.692-693.
De Moor, M., & de Geus, E. (2018). Causality in the Associations Between Exercise,
Personality, and Mental Health. In The Exercise Effect on Mental Health (pp. 91-123). CRC
Press.
Lê Cook, B., Wayne, G.F., Kafali, E.N., Liu, Z., Shu, C. and Flores, M., 2014. Trends in
smoking among adults with mental illness and association between mental health treatment
and smoking cessation. Jama, 311(2), pp.172-182.
Mei, Z. H. A. N. G. (2016). Influence of Physical Exercise on the Mental Health and
Interpersonal Relationships of Adolescents. Journal of Nanjing Sport Institute (Social
Science), 5, 016.
Owen, L. and Corfe, B., 2017. The role of diet and nutrition on mental health and
wellbeing. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 76(4), pp.425-426.

6
MENTAL HEALTH
Selhub, E.M., Logan, A.C. and Bested, A.C., 2014. Fermented foods, microbiota, and mental
health: ancient practice meets nutritional psychiatry. Journal of physiological
anthropology, 33(1), p.2.