Aerobic Exercise Efficacious for Preventing, Treating Postpartum Depression
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
THURSDAY, Nov. 30, 2023 -- Aerobic exercise is efficacious for preventing and treating postpartum depression, according to a review published online Nov. 29 in PLOS Medicine.
Hao Xu, Ph.D., from the China University of Geosciences in Wuhan, and colleagues conducted a systematic review to examine the effect of aerobic exercise on postpartum depression. Twenty-six studies with 2,867 participants were included.
The researchers found that aerobic exercise was efficacious for preventing and treating postpartum depression compared with standard care (mean difference, −1.90). There were significant differences observed based on the intervention objective (prevention versus treatment). On analysis of the effect sizes of subgroups, the supervised exercise group had slightly better performance than the unsupervised group (−1.66 versus 1.37), and the team exercise group slightly outperformed the individual exercise group (−1.43 versus −1.28). A more pronounced intervention effect was seen for the moderate-intensity (35 to 45 minutes) versus the low-intensity (50 to 60 minutes) and high-intensity (20 to 30 minutes) groups (−2.63 and −2.96, respectively). Compared with the group exercising one to two and five to six times per week, the group exercising three to four times per week had a more significant intervention effect (−2.91 and −3.28, respectively). In pairwise comparisons of intervention effects among the five common types of aerobic exercises, no significant differences were observed.
"Taken together, the efficacy of aerobic exercise in preventing and treating postpartum depression is significant compared to standard care, with a greater emphasis on prevention," the authors write.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted November 2023
Read this next
Risk for Depressive Symptoms Increased for Perimenopausal Women
THURSDAY, May 9, 2024 -- Perimenopausal women have an increased risk for depressive symptoms and diagnoses, according to a review published in the July 15 issue of the Journal of...
Majority of U.S. Adults Give Health Care System a 'D' for Handling Mental Health
WEDNESDAY, May 8, 2024 -- Three-quarters of U.S. adults believe mental health issues are identified and treated worse than physical health issues, according to the results of a...
Mortality Risk Up for Cancer Survivors With Elevated Loneliness
MONDAY, May 6, 2024 -- Cancer survivors with elevated loneliness have a higher mortality risk, according to a study published online April 25 in the Journal of the National...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.