[NYAPRS Enews] Study: Physical Activity Improves Mood For PWPD

[Matt Canuteson]

NYAPRS Note: NYAPRS does not endorse language used in this article that
may be offensive to some of our readers. The importance of the subject
matter influenced our decision to share this study with you all.

 

Physical Activity Improves Mood For People With Serious Mental Illness

Science Daily January 15, 2009

 

A new study from Indiana University suggests that even meager levels of
physical activity can improve the mood of people with serious mental
illnesses (SMI) such as bipolar disorder, major depression and
schizophrenia.

 

The study, published in the November issue of the "International Journal
of Social Psychiatry," both reinforces earlier findings that people with
SMI demonstrate low levels of physical activity and supports the
consideration of physical activity as a regular part of psychiatric
rehabilitation.

 

"We found a positive association between physical activity level and
positive mood when low to moderate levels of physical activity are
considered," said study author Bryan McCormick, associate professor in
IU's Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies. "Physical
activity interventions that require lower levels of exertion might be
more conducive to improving transitory mood, or the ups and downs people
with SMI experience throughout the day."

 

McCormick said physical activity often is advocated in addition to
psychiatric treatment for people with SMI because of the significant
health concerns common to this population. The low levels of physical
activity also common to this population poses a major hurdle, however.
For this study, physical activity is considered most forms of sustained
movement, such as house cleaning, gardening, walking for transportation
or formal exercise.

 

"The challenge is how to use naturally motivating activities that people
have in their everyday lives to get them out and engaged," McCormick
said.

 

The Study

For seven consecutive days, researchers randomly paged study
participants, who then filled out questionnaires about their mood and
recent activities. The responses were matched with data collected during
the previous 10 minutes using small light-weight accelerometers worn by
the study participants. The equipment measured activity levels and
duration. McCormick said this is the first time these research methods
were combined, allowing researchers to look at study participants' daily
ups and downs as they occur rather than trying to average the
experiences.

 

The study involved 11 people from the U.S. and 12 people from Serbia.
Central Europe is experiencing a shift from institutional care to
community care for its citizens with SMI, similar to the shift seen in
the U.S. in the 1970s. McCormick's research has been examining this,
too, in comparison to U.S. populations. The findings were surprising in
this particular study. "I was expecting a higher level of physical
activity within the population of Eastern Europeans," he said. "We
didn't see any differences."

 

The average physical activity level for both groups was comparable to
that of sedentary adults, less than that of adults with a developmental
disability and considerably less than that of active adults, according
to earlier research by study co-author Georgia Frey, associate professor
in IU's Department of Kinesiology.

 

The least active experiences captured in this study correlated with less
positive moods.

 

The study notes that walking is one of the most frequently advocated
forms of physical activity in psychiatric rehabilitation programs. Such
programs, according to the study, would appear to afford both
physiological and psychological benefits.

 

Co-Authors Include: Frey; Chien-Tsung Lee, IU Department of Kinesiology,
School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation; Sanghee Chun, IU
School of HPER's Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies; Jim
Sibthorp, University of Utah, Salt Lake City; Tomislav Gajic, M.D.,
Branka Stamatovic-Gajic, M.D., and Milena Maksimovich, Department of
Psychiatry, Health Centre Valjevo, Valjevo, Serbia.

 

Journal Reference:

Mccormick et al. Predicting Transitory Mood From Physical Activity Level
Among People With Severe Mental Illness in Two Cultures. International
Journal of Social Psychiatry, 2008; 54 (6): 527 DOI:
10.1177/0020764008091423 

 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090114110931.htm

 

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