Exercise may be as effective as psychological therapies and potentially even antidepressants in treating depression, a new study suggests.
Researchers at the University of Lancashire, reviewing 73 studies, found exercise offered a moderate benefit in reducing depressive symptoms compared to no treatment or a placebo.
Exercise was found to be as beneficial as psychological therapies, the study said, drawing on 10 clinical trials.
It also showed comparability to antidepressants, though researchers warned this evidence was limited and of low certainty.
The long-term benefits of exercise for depression also remain unclear, as most studies only followed participants for the duration of the treatment period.
Professor Andrew Clegg, lead author of the Cochrane review, said: “Our findings suggest that exercise appears to be a safe and accessible option for helping to manage symptoms of depression.
“This suggests that exercise works well for some people, but not for everyone, and finding approaches that individuals are willing and able to maintain is important.”
The review found that light to moderate intensity exercise may be better in tackling depression than vigorous exercise.
People also saw the best results when they completed between 13 and 36 exercise sessions.
Those who mixed up weights and resistance training with aerobic exercise also seemed to fare better than those who just did aerobic exercise such as running or cycling.
Some forms of exercise, such as yoga, qigong and stretching, were not included in the analysis.
Examples of moderate activity can include very brisk walking (4mph or faster), heavy cleaning such as washing windows or mopping, cycling at 10mph-12mph, or badminton.
Vigorous activity includes hiking, jogging at 6mph or faster, shovelling, fast cycling, basketball or tennis.
Dr Jeff Lambert, associate professor in health psychology from the University of Bath welcomed the study but said its findings were limited by the quality of the trials it includes.
“Many of the exercise studies were small and had methodological weaknesses, and when the analysis is restricted to the most robust trials, the apparent benefit of exercise for depression becomes smaller, although still statistically significant.
“There is some evidence suggesting that exercise may be no less effective than psychological therapy or antidepressant medication, but this conclusion is based on a small number of studies and therefore comes with considerable uncertainty.
“The review also cannot tell us confidently whether exercise works better for more or less severe depression, whether effectiveness varies by exercise type, or whether people should switch from medication or therapy to exercise alone.
“It is also important to note that this review mainly focused on structured, often supervised exercise programmes, which tend to attract motivated volunteers who are willing and able to take part.
“This limits how well the findings apply to the wider population of people with depression.”
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