Physical Activity and Prevention of Depression: A Systematic Review

This paper highlights the study of the relationship between physical activity and prevention of depression using a systematic review. The paper further elaborates the method of the study along with the evidences that were collected. The paper also makes suggestions for future research.

Running head: HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Executive Summary:
Depression is normally connected with high death rates, along with elevated levels of
suicide rates and negative implications to mind and substantial functioning, especially at an older
age. However, the domain of physical movement (PA) demonstrates promising confirmation that
PA can treat depression which could maintain a strategic distance from the physiologic reactions
and expenses related with endorsed antidepressants. This paper highlights the study of the
relationship between physical activity and prevention of depression using a systematic review.
The paper further elaborates the method of the study along with the evidences that were
collected. The paper also makes suggestions for future research. From the discussion of the
evidence it could be concluded that the evidence is enough to deduce that physical activity may
prevent depression.

2
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Methods:..........................................................................................................................................3
Search strategy.............................................................................................................................3
Inclusion/ exclusion criteria.........................................................................................................4
Flow chart....................................................................................................................................6
Results Summary of the evidence....................................................................................................7
Conclusion:......................................................................................................................................8
Conclusion from evidence...........................................................................................................8
Study objectives from evidence...................................................................................................8
Further research...........................................................................................................................9
References......................................................................................................................................11

3
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Introduction
Depression is normally connected with high death rates, along with elevated levels of
suicide rates and negative implications to mind and substantial functioning, especially at an older
age. However, the domain of physical movement (PA) demonstrates promising confirmation that
PA can treat depression which could maintain a strategic distance from the physiologic reactions
and expenses related with endorsed antidepressants (Anglin et al., 2013). With the high rates of
depression prevalent everywhere and its weight on well-being and the human services
framework, naturally, it would be sensible from a wellbeing point of view to move focus toward
keeping the beginning of depression. For imminent investigations that include substantial
associates and measure levels of PA and depression at least two periods are required (Sagna,
Gallo & Pontone, 2014). Therefore this paper highlights the study of the relationship between
physical activity and prevention of depression using a systematic review. The paper further
elaborates the method of the study along with the evidences that were collected. The paper also
makes suggestions for future research.
Methods:
Search strategy
Data sources- the data sources that were searched for to collect evidence for the study
included a comprehensive search of the following databases MEDLINE, PubMed, Embase,
PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, and Cochrane Database. All the abive databases were searched for
between the year 2013 and 2017. The articles which were chosen to conduct the systematic
review had a relation between physical activity and depression prevailing in older adults.

4
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
However additional articles were searched for using the Google scholar. All the articles were
related articles and had a detailed use of the outlines of the terms that were used in the
comprehensive search.
Search terms or key words- The key terms that were searched for to retrieve the articles
involved physical activity, depression, older adults, prevention of depression, interventions for
agedcare.
Inclusion/ exclusion criteria
The inclusion criteria were:
The articles were only selected for the systematic review only if the studies involved the
following inclusion criteria which were: (1) the study successfully implemented a prospective-
based and a longitudinal design; (2) there was an examined and established relationships
between physical activity and depression; (3) it has been identified that physical activity is
considered as the exposure variable whereas depression as the outcome variable; (4) the study
has referred to depression using the depression threshold scores especially on self-report scales
or it has used the direct measures of depression mainly like a physician’s assessment or records
of hospital discharge (Wayne et al., 2014).
The exclusion criteria were:
The studies were left out from the review if they were cross-sectional or experimental in
nature, the articles were not exactly specified to depression; failed to assign the criteria of cut-off
to assess category depression; or if it considered individuals at baseline.

5
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Flow chart
There were 90 publications
identified for further assessment
30 publications were considered for
the review
60 articles were excluded
20 no cut-off criteria set to diagnose categoric depression
17 designs was experimental or cross-sectional
12 were not specific to depression
7 review articles were related to PA and depression selected
4 analysis were related to depressed individuals at the baseline

6
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Results
Summary of the evidence
The evidences that were included in the study showed that out of 30 of the articles which
were finally selected for conduction of the systematic review, eleven of the papers were able to
provide information that regarding the change in the levels of physical activity and that how is it
related with the occurrence of depression (Stubbs et al., 2014). Out of these 30 studies, only two
of the studies were of low quality and two were of high quality which shows no such significant
relationship between the levels of the changes in physical activity and that of depression. There
were four high quality studies from which it could be deduced that with the reduction of physical
activity over a long time, there are chances of increase of the risk of depression that is associated
with the increase in the levels of activity (Mammen & Faulkner, 2013). Out of these 30 studies,
only one study was of modest methodologic quality, which reported an elevated effect, for those
individuals who showed reduced physical activity over time were more than ten times more
prone to develop depression. On the other hand three of the high-quality studies rout of the 30
articles revealed that the subjects who underwent increased amount of physical activity over a
long time were at a decreased risk of depression which occurred subsequently (Silveira et al.,
2013). Finally two of the high-quality studies were able to show that the subjects who were able
to maintain their levels of physical activity had a reduced risk of depression which was relative
to those who were mostly inactive throughout their period of later ages (Michiels et al., 2013).

7
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Conclusion:
Conclusion from evidence
From the above discussion of the evidence it could be concluded that the evidence is
enough to deduce that physical activity may prevent depression. Out of the 30 articles, there
were twenty-five studies which demonstrated that benchmark PA is conversely identified with
follow-up dejection, and the high share of these examinations were of elevated methodologic
quality. The imminent confirmation adds weightage to a causal connection amongst PA and
decreases in depression. There is an existence of a significant evidence that any level of PA,
which includes low levels, and can anticipate future depression. At any rate, current rules for PA,
set up for physical medical advantages, show up similarly suitable for averting depression. A few
investigations in this review recommended that to gain security against future depression, people
who are at presently active should manage their PA and the individuals who have a background
marked by inactiveness should start a physically active way of life. From a wellbeing
advancement point of view, this survey recommends that advancing any level of PA could be an
imperative methodology for the avoidance of future discouragement, which could reduce the
weight of malady and treatment. In that context, the population level advancement of PA ought
to be viewed as a procedure for advancing populace emotional wellness notwithstanding physical
wellbeing.
Study objectives from evidence
The study objectives acquired from the evidence involves:
 Creating awareness about the strong indication that physical activity can reduce the risk
of depression development.

8
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
 Need to understand the biochemical and mechanisms of psychosocial that most likely
operate in connection to the phenomenon with the precise combination.
 The examination of significant psychosocial factors that might be involved in mediating
the relationship between participation in a physical activity and depression
 Encouraging the use of measures of self-report which are inconsistent in nature for PA
between studies limits that have the ability to examine the relationship of dose–response
that exists between PA and depression.
 Finally, the use of various measures of subjective as well as the direct measures of
depression that limits the comparison between the studies (Gallo et al., 2013).
Further research
The future research in this field would involve carrying out of all the above mentioned
study objectives in addition to identification and addressing of the study limitations in order to
increase the rigidity of the study. In spite of consistency in the literature in regards to a defensive
capacity of PA, some alert is required given that there might be various covariates that anticipate
both PA and depression and might not have been completely represented in the checked on
thinks about. Another methodological shortcoming of the surveyed contemplates was simply the
utilization of different report measures for PA and depression (Bartels & Naslund, 2013). This
predisposition may overstate or hide the genuine relationship amongst PA and dejection.
Furthermore, the utilization of conflicting self-report proportions of PA between contemplates
limits the capacity to look at dose– reaction connections amongst PA and depression. To help
examination, future investigations should catch different segments of PA (e.g., recurrence, term,
force) to look at and make interferences reflecting national PA rules (Jimenez et al., 2013).

9
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Similarly the researchers could investigate the connections between types and domains of PA
and the anticipation of depression.

10
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
References
American Geriatrics Society Expert Panel on the Care of Older Adults with Diabetes Mellitus.
(2013). Guidelines abstracted from the American Geriatrics Society Guidelines for
improving the care of older adults with diabetes mellitus: 2013 update. Journal of the
American Geriatrics Society, 61(11), 2020-2026.
Anglin, R. E., Samaan, Z., Walter, S. D., & McDonald, S. D. (2013). Vitamin D deficiency and
depression in adults: systematic review and meta-analysis. The British journal of
psychiatry, 202(2), 100-107.
Bartels, S. J., & Naslund, J. A. (2013). The underside of the silver tsunami—older adults and
mental health care. New England Journal of Medicine, 368(6), 493-496.
Gallo, J. J., Morales, K. H., Bogner, H. R., Raue, P. J., Zee, J., Bruce, M. L., & Reynolds, C. F.
(2013). Long term effect of depression care management on mortality in older adults:
follow-up of cluster randomized clinical trial in primary care. Bmj, 346, f2570.
Jimenez, D. E., Bartels, S. J., Cardenas, V., & Alegría, M. (2013). Stigmatizing attitudes toward
mental illness among racial/ethnic older adults in primary care. International journal of
geriatric psychiatry, 28(10), 1061-1068.
LeFevre, M. L. (2014). Screening for suicide risk in adolescents, adults, and older adults in
primary care: US Preventive Services Task Force recommendation statement. Annals of
internal medicine, 160(10), 719-726.

11
HEALTH ADVANCEMENT AND PROMOTION
Mammen, G., & Faulkner, G. (2013). Physical activity and the prevention of depression: a
systematic review of prospective studies. American journal of preventive medicine, 45(5),
649-657.
Michiels, B., Van Puyenbroeck, K., Verhoeven, V., Vermeire, E., & Coenen, S. (2013). The
value of neuraminidase inhibitors for the prevention and treatment of seasonal influenza:
a systematic review of systematic reviews. PloS one, 8(4), e60348.
Sagna, A., Gallo, J. J., & Pontone, G. M. (2014). Systematic review of factors associated with
depression and anxiety disorders among older adults with Parkinson's
disease. Parkinsonism & related disorders, 20(7), 708-715.
Silveira, H., Moraes, H., Oliveira, N., Coutinho, E. S. F., Laks, J., & Deslandes, A. (2013).
Physical exercise and clinically depressed patients: a systematic review and meta-
analysis. Neuropsychobiology, 67(2), 61-68.
Stubbs, B., Binnekade, T., Eggermont, L., Sepehry, A. A., Patchay, S., & Schofield, P. (2014).
Pain and the risk for falls in community-dwelling older adults: systematic review and
meta-analysis. Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation, 95(1), 175-187.
Wayne, P. M., Walsh, J. N., Taylor‐Piliae, R. E., Wells, R. E., Papp, K. V., Donovan, N. J., &
Yeh, G. Y. (2014). Effect of Tai Chi on cognitive performance in older adults: Systematic
review and meta‐Analysis. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 62(1), 25-39.