Sports, Physical Activity, and Mental Health - Coursework Example

Sports, physical activity, and mental health Bachelor's Thesis Submitted to the Abstract This study reviewed the role of physical activity and sports in the promotion of mental health. The study reviewed the literature to investigate the subject matter. In the review of literature, it focuses on sources that are peer-reviewed and authoritative. Based on reliable and authoritative sources, the role of sports and physical exercise are important in promoting mental health because of the effect of sports and physical exercise on the physiology of the body. The positive effects of exercise on mental health cover improving mood, reducing stress, overcoming depression, and handling schizophrenia. Table of Contents Topic page Abstract 2 Table of Contents 3 I. Introduction 4 Statement of the problem 6 Study objectives 6 II. Methodology 7 III. Result 8 IV. Conclusion 14 Bibliography 15 I. Introduction According to worldwide figures of the World Health Organization's (WHO) educational material, Investing in Mental Health (4-5, 8, 10): 450 million people are afflicted with mental and behavioural problems About a million people commit suicide annually and the main cause of this is depression 4 out of 6 of the leading causes of disability are the result of neuropsychiatry problems (depression, alcohol-use problems, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder) 1 out 4 families has a member with mental disorder More than 150 million people suffer depression at any time 25 million people suffer from schizophrenia The difficulty of mental disorder on family members are difficult to assess and quantify but it has a significant impact on a family's quality of life Other than health and social costs, those who are deficient in mental health are also victims of human rights violations, stigma, and discrimination Mental health problems cost developed nations between 3-4% of the gross national product (GNP) or several billion dollars or euros covering both actual expenditures and loss of productivity In developed nations, 44-70% of patients with mental disorders receive no treatment. Data is worse in developing nations where around 90% do not receive treatment. At the same time, mental disorders and physical illnesses are interrelated. Further, patients with depression are likely to avoid treatment and are at a greater risk for disability and mortality. The burden of mental health amounts to a large human misery, disability and economic loss In percentage terms, the 4 out of 6 (or 2 out of 3) with disabilities attributable to neuropsychiatric disorder translates into a pie chart represented by figure 1. Figure 1. Pie chart of causes of years lived with disability in percentage terms Source: WHO 2003:8, citing 2002 data sources The WHO, however, emphasized that there is good evidence to claim that successful interventions for schizophrenia, depression, and other mental disorder "are not only available, but also affordable and cost-effective" (5). Citing its other official documents, the WHO defines health as a "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity" (7). At the same time, the WHO pointed out that mental health "include subjective well-being, perceived self-efficacy, autonomy, competence, intergenerational dependence and recognition of one's ability to realize intellectual and emotional potential" (7). According to the WHO, the link between physical illnesses and mental is illustrated by Figure 2. Figure 2 Link between depression and illness Source: WHO 2003: 11 The WHO cites figure 2 of the earlier page as evidence that mental health is closely linked with physical well-being. In the WHO interpretation of data, figure 2 provides evidence that mental health or depression somehow contributes to the deterioration or existence of physical illnesses (10-11). WHO argues that while depression in the general population can go from 3-10%, it is much and consistently higher in people affected by chronic disease (10). Addressing mental health is important because of the overall economic burden of mental disorders. Table 1 from the WHO illustrates the economic burden from mental disorders arising from poor mental health: Table 1. Economic burden of mental disorders arising from poor mental health Source: WHO 2003: 14 Table 1 Mental disorders cause the United States around US$148 billion (1990 prices) annually, Canada at Can$ 14.4 billion (1998 prices) annually, and the United Kingdom at £32 billion (1996/97 prices) [15]. Given the seriousness of the problem of mental health, the research problem addressed by this bachelor's thesis is as follows: What is the role of physical activity and sports in promoting mental health? The study objectives: 1. Identify the role of physical activity and sports in promoting mental health 2. Understand the physiological behind the role of physical activity and exercise in promoting mental health II. METHODOLOGY The study employed review of literature as its method for addressing its research problem and meeting its study objectives. In identifying sources for review and study, this work selected sources that are most authoritative and reliable. In addition, it focuses on materials that are peer-reviewed and enjoy wide acceptability in the academic community. In line with the methodology of using materials that are authoritative and widely accepted by the academic community, this work utilized the following materials for its literature review: Medical journals Psychiatric Journals Journals on mental and physical fitness Journals on sport Online materials with good reputation Articles on medicine and exercise written by physicians or medical doctors on exercise and physical activity from the perspective of medical science In general, the work utilized materials recent materials. Most of the materials were written in 2000 and later. Only a few materials from dates earlier than 2000 were used. However, materials selected that were written earlier than 2000 are those that seem to have made important contributions to knowledge. III. RESULTS A. The role of physical activity and exercise in mental health According to Taylor & others, the benefits of exercise in clinical and non-clinical populations are best enumerated in Table 2. Table 2. Benefits of exercise to clinical and non-clinical populations Source: Taylor & others, 1985: 196 At the same time, Taylor & others cautioned against exercising without recognizing the risks. The risks of too much pre-occupation with exercise are shown in Table 3. Table 3. Risks of too much exercise and mental health Source: Taylor & others 1985: 199 The risks of exercise, however, are better handled not by stopping exercises but reducing them to moderation. Exercising in moderation is one of the topics discussed by the work of Sharma & others. Similar to the view of Taylor & others, Drs. Ashish Sharma, Vishal Madaan, and Frederick Petty, who are Doctors of Medicine from the various medical centers of Nebraska, enumerated the benefits of exercise and physical activity as follows (106): Improves sleep Increases interest in sex Promotes better endurance Relieves stress Improves mood Increases energy and stamina Reduces feeling of tiredness that can increase mental alertness Reduces weight Reduces cholesterol and improves cardiovascular fitness For doctors of medicine, Sharma & others modifying lifestyles will be a cost-effective way to promote health and quality of life (106). Further, the doctors emphasize that exercise and physical activity will be especially important for people with various types of mental illnesses or conditions (106). Citing the work of Callaghan in the Journal of Psychiatric Mental Health, Sharma & others pointed out that "evidence has suggested that exercise may be an often neglected intervention in mental health care" (106). Citing the work of M. Guszkowska in 2004 in Psychiatry Poland (in Polish), Medical Doctors Sharma & others revealed that that "exercise has been found to alleviate symptoms such as low self-esteem and social withdrawal" (106). Again, citing the work of Callaghan in the Journal of Psychiatric Mental Health, Sharma & others stressed that exercise improves mental health by "reducing anxiety, depression, and negative mood and by improving self-esteem and cognitive function" (106). For Medical Doctors Sharma & others, exercise and physical activity includes jogging, swimming, cycling, walking, gardening, and dancing (106). According to Medical Doctors Sharma & others (106): 30 minutes of exercise of moderate intensity (like brisk walking) for 3 days a week is sufficient for health benefits The 30 minutes need not be continuous Three ten-minutes are believed to be as useful as one 30-minute walk B. Physiological basis on why physical activity and exercise promotes mental health Medical Doctors Sharma & others pointed out that exercise and physical activity can improve mental health through the exercise and physical activity-induced "increase in blood circulation to the brain and by an influence on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and, thus, on the physiologic reaction to stress" (106). They added that "this physiologic influence is probably mediated by the communication of the HPA axis with several regions of the brain, including the limbic system, which controls motivation and mood; the amygdale, which generates fear in response to stress; and the hippocampus, which plays an important part in memory formation as well as in mood and motivation" (106).1 The work of Taylor and others reviewed empirical or clinical studies on the role of exercise on depression. The review of Taylor and others is captured on Table 4 of this work on the next page. As what can be verified from Table 4, so many studies are available that confirm the role of exercise in managing depression and, consequently, in promoting mental health. At the same time, however, several studies also indicate that the effects of exercise may not be significantly different from other modes of therapies such as psychotherapy. While the matter constitute a point for further research, the role of exercise and physical activity in promoting mental health as a POSSIBLE therapy SUBSTITUTE is confirmed by the several studies. Meanwhile, the studies of Cox and others, as depicted by Tables 5 and 6 and Figure 3 of page 12 indicate that while the effect of physical exercise and sports on anxiety may not be immediate, they have beneficial effects just the same after at least a few minutes. Table 5 of page 12 indicate that intensity of exercise can possibly be beneficial for anxieties. The more intense the exercise (provided one's heart can take it) leads to a greater reduction in the anxiety level. However, what is better to emphasize in Table 12 is that even a less intense exercise can lead to benefits in relieving anxieties. Table 6 of page 12 appears to emphasize that there will be a trade-off: anxiety may decrease but the heart rate will move faster and can be risky. Figure 3 page 12 confirms that exercise is beneficial for addressing anxiety. However, there is no control group and future research must address this. Table 4. Effect of exercise on depression Source: Taylor & others 1985: 196 Table 5. Means and standard deviation of anxiety with exercise intensity Source: Cox & others 2009:62 Table 1 Table 6. Means and standard deviations for heart rate at various exercise intensities and measured at various times Source: Cox & others 2009:63 Table 2 Figure 3. Exercise and anxiety, means and standard deviation across 4 measurements Source: Cox & others 2009:64 Figure 1 Earlier, using clinical procedures, Blumenthal found that exercise is more effective in the long term than sertraline or exercise plus sertraline for major depression in adults (105). In other words, exercise alone rather than exercise combined with using the drug is more effective in the long term for depression. Sertraline is an anti-depressant drug of Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. Blumenthal's experiment, in collaboration with colleagues, was done in a clinic in North Carolina, United States of America, among 156 adults in which the mean age was 57, 72% are women, and with ages from 50 to 77. The experimental subjects were divided into 3 groups: sertraline alone was used by 48 individuals, 53 individuals, and exercise and sertraline employed exercise alone by 55 individuals. The exercise was a regime of 3 supervised 45-minute exercise sessions per week for 16 weeks. Sertraline intake was initially at 50 mg/day up to 200 mg/day. In the experiment, Blumenthal and colleagues found that the benefit of the exercise continued way beyond the therapy period and, most important, depression was lower in the group who used exercise alone rather than combining exercise and the Pfizer anti-depressant drug sertraline. The results of Blumenthal experiment are summarized in Table 7. Table 7. Exercise versus Setraline & Sertraline with Exercise in depression therapy Source: Blumenthal 2000:105 Blumenthal's Table shows that depression rate in the group who used exercise alone was 30% versus 52% in the group that used Seatrain and versus 55% in the group that used both exercise and Sertraline. It may even be possible that people are better off if they use Sertraline rather than combine exercise and the anti-depressant drug. At the same time, the Table unmistakably indicate the exercise only may be the better way to handle depression. Based on Hume's commentary, the drawback in Blumenthal's experiment is that the sample used was not a random sample and that the results cannot be generalized for all the depressed population (Blumenthal 105). IV. CONCLUSION Thus, based on the foregoing, there is ample evidence provided by medical and sports authorities on the benefits of physical activity and exercise to mental health. The list of benefits of sports and physical activity to mental health covers improvement in academic performance, assertiveness, confidence, emotional stability, independence, intellectual function, memory, mood, self-control, sexual satisfaction, work efficiency, and the like. At the same time, authorities also warn there are also risks to exercise. The risks include addiction, compulsion, decrease involvement in basic life, escape, fatigue, overcompetitiveness, overexertion, poor eating habits, preoccupation with fitness, and self-centeredness. The balance of evidence appears to favour the benefits rather than the risks although the risks deserve more studies. Authorities also confirm that there is physiological basis on the positive effects of exercise and physical activity on mental health. The experiments that show that exercise is as effective if not more effective than drugs in handling mental states confirms the existence of the link between sports and physical activity, physiology, and mental health. Thus, physical activity and exercise contribute more than distraction in the relief of stress, depression, anxiety, and other conditions in promoting mental health. The contribution is through physiology as well. In sum, sports and physical activity improves not only the physical well-being but the mental well-being as well. Work Cited Anshel, Mark. "Conceptualizing applied exercise psychology." Journal of the American Board of Sport Psychology, 1.2 (2007). Available 9 January 2010 Blumenthal, Babyak. "Exercise was more effective in the long term than sertraline or exercise plus sertraline for major depression in older adults" [with commentary from Wilfrid Hume, Ph.D.]. Psychosomatic Medicine, 62 (2000, Sept-October). Available 9 January 2010 < http://ebmh.bmj.com/content/4/4/105.full.pdf+html> Cohen, Gilian and Eric Shamus. "Depressed, Low Esteem: What can exercise do for you?" The Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice, 7.2 (2009). Available 8 January 2010 Cox, Richard, Tom Thomas, and Joseph Davis. "Delayed anxiolytic effect associated with an acute bout of aerobic exercise." Journal of Exercise Physiology Online, 3.4 (2000), 59-66. Available 7 January 2010 Daley, Amanda. "Exercise therapy and mental health in clinical populations: is exercise therapy a worthwhile intervention?" Advances in Psychiatric Treatment, 8 (2002), 262-270. Available 7 January 2010 Richardson, Caroline, Guy Faulkner, Judith McDevitt, Gary Skrinar, Dori Hutchinson, and John Piette. Psychiatry Serivces, 56.3 (2005), 324-331. Available 8 January 2010 Sharma, Ashish, Vishal Madaan, and Frederick Petty. "Exercise for mental health." Primary Care Companion Journal of Clinical Psychology, 8.2 (2006). Available 9 January 2010 Taylor, C. Barr, James Sallis, and Richard Needle. "The relation of physical activity and exercise to mental health." Public Health Reports, 100.2 (1985), 195-202. World Health Organization (WHO). Investing in mental health. Geneva: World Health Organization, 2003. Available 7 January 2010 Read More