Physical Activity Reduces the Risk of Subsequent Depression for Older Adults

Previous studies assessing protective effects of physical activity on depression have had conflicting results; one recent study argued that excluding disabled subjects attenuated any observed effects. The authors' objective was to compare the effects of higher levels of physical activity on prevalent and incident depression with and without exclusion of disabled subjects. Participants were 1,947 community-dwelling adults from the Alameda County Study aged 50-94 years at baseline in 1994 with 5 years of follow-up. Depression was measured using criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Physical activity was…

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  National Institute on Aging