People with depression and anxiety experienced almost double the cardiovascular benefits of exercise than those without any diagnosis, according to a new study.
The researchers analyzed the health records of more than 50,000 patients in the Massachusetts Brigham General Biobank database, of whom about 4,000 suffered a significant heart-related event, such as a heart attack. Through a questionnaire, they evaluated the rate of coronary events in people who said they met the recommended weekly exercise.
Patients who reported meeting exercise recommendations were 17 percent less likely to experience a major cardiac event. There was an even starker contrast between people who experience anxiety and depression and those who don’t. They were 22 percent less likely to have a major heart-related event compared to 10 percent of patients without either condition.
“The effect of physical activity on the brain’s stress response may be particularly relevant in those with stress-related psychiatric conditions,” said lead study author and postdoctoral clinical research fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital, Hadil Zureigat said in a press release.
“This does not suggest that exercise is only effective in people with depression or anxiety, but we did find that these patients appear to derive greater cardiovascular benefit from physical activity,” Zureigat added.
World Health Organization said in early March the prevalence of depression and anxiety increased by 25% globally in the first year of the pandemic.
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The team noted that although the analysis only included people who met the weekly exercise standard of 150 minutes of moderate exercise, any amount may mitigate some cardiovascular risk for those with depression and anxiety.
“Physical activity will not only help you feel better, it will also powerfully reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease. It can be difficult to make the transition, but once achieved, physical activity allows people with these common stress-related chronic psychiatric conditions to hit two birds with one stone.”
The study will be presented at the 71st Annual Scientific Session of the American College of Cardiology.
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