Healthy Life Plans

It’s no secret that being physically active is important to maintain a healthy life, but exercise can fix a host of other problems too. Depression is one of those things that you don’t really need prescription drugs to fix, just a little physical activity.

Cardiologists and mental health experts know that depression raises the risk of having a heart attack by 50 percent or more. This is probably because people who are depressed are less motivated and therefore less likely to take the time to exercise and take care of themselves. If they only knew their depression could be cured with a little exercise.

In a study of over 1,000 people, scientists found that people who were depressed were twice as likely to have severe heart problems. When they looked at the exercise habits of non-depressed people, they found the participants who were not depressed and didn’t exercise had the same risk of heart disease as people who were depressed.

Another study showed that exercise and anti-depressant pills were equally effective at treating depression. So instead of spending hundreds of dollars poisoning yourself with pills every month, you can take a 30 minute walk / run and beat your depression naturally.

Study leader James Blumenthal says “Almost one-third of depressed patients in general do not respond to medications, and for others, the medications can cause unwanted side effects. Exercise should be considered a viable option”.

Cardiovascular exercise is the best for fighting symptoms of depression. This can be anything such as running a mile, jumping rope, doing yoga, going for a swim, riding a bike or even gardening. Anything to get your blood flowing. They key is consistency. You have to spend a little time exercising every day to really fight depression, but any exercise will be good for your heart and your body.