A study has found that taking at least 7,000 steps a day may significantly reduce your risk of developing depression.
The study, based on data from 96,000 people, found that for every 1,000 steps you took each day, up to 10,000 steps, your chances of developing depression decreased by 9 percent.
Advising people to take more steps each day could be part of a “comprehensive public health approach” to tackling mental health problems, researchers said.
The authors combined data from 33 previous studies in which people wore pedometers to measure the number of steps they took each day, and compared it with results from clinical questionnaires about whether they had been diagnosed with depression and about symptoms of depression. .
Overall, the more steps people take, the less likely it is. Mental health benefits stopped at 10,000 per day, but you can suffer from depression.
Compared to sedentary people, people who took at least 7,000 steps each day were 31% less likely to be diagnosed with depression. Walking just 5,000 steps a day was associated with reduced depression symptoms and improved mental health.
Regular walks can also reduce the risk of dementia
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The study, led by a team from the University of Castilla-La Mancha in Spain, found that “setting physical activity goals based on step counts is easy to understand and incorporate into daily life, and is a good idea for depression prevention guidelines.” It may be worth considering.”
Around one in six adults in the UK report symptoms of moderate to severe depression, and NHS data shows 8.6 million people are prescribed antidepressants.
The study says there are several reasons why walking may reduce the risk of depression, including reducing inflammation in the body and improving self-esteem and sleep.
Previous research has shown that the number of steps you take each day is strongly associated with your mental and physical health. A report this year found that setting a national target of 5,000 steps a day could save the NHS £15bn a year through fewer chronic conditions.
Around half of British adults are unable to walk 5,000 steps consistently three days a week, according to research from the London School of Economics and Vitality.
Doctors say you can easily increase your step count by making small changes like getting off the bus one stop earlier, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and going for a walk every lunch break.
The new study is observational and cannot prove cause and effect.
This study is observational and may only indicate that people who are not depressed are more likely to be active
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Professor David Curtis from University College London said: “This study shows that people with more depressive symptoms tend to take fewer steps and vice versa.” The study doesn’t know whether this protects against depression. This just shows that people who aren’t depressed walk more, but of course that could be because they’re more cheerful and active.
“In fact, physical inactivity has been cited as a symptom of depression, so it’s no surprise that observational studies would confirm this association. It’s possible that exercise reduces depression, but unfortunately However, this study shows no evidence that this is the case.”
Dr Brendon Stubbs, from King’s College London, said: ‘While there is a clear link between taking more steps and reducing symptoms of depression, there is evidence that walking more can reduce depression. I can’t say with certainty that it will be alleviated.”
“However, this finding fits well with existing evidence on the benefits of physical activity on mental health. The reassuring message is that even small increases in the number of daily steps (such as 1,000 more steps per day) “It may reduce the risk of future depression. But we really need a long-term randomized trial to test whether this is causal.”
Research shows that regular walks can improve your mental health and reduce your risk of diseases such as dementia and heart failure. The popular daily goal of walking 10,000 steps a day dates back to marketing campaigns for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, but most research shows that people set this goal for the health benefits. It has been shown that there is no need to achieve this.
