How Can Exercise Or Lifestyle Help My Depression?

Dr. Trivedi answers the question: 'Can Exercise Help With My Depression?'

By
Madhukar Trivedi, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, UT Southwestern Medical School
February 28, 2008, 12:14 PM ET
1 min read

— -- Question: How can exercise or lifestyle help my depression?

Answer: Exercise can help with depression in two ways. One, as a general good health measure, exercise is very helpful to improve routine and other things.

There is another component, which is when you use moderate intensity exercise, as is recommended by the CDC or the American College of Sports Medicine, which is 30-45 minutes of exercise three to four times a week, can be effective by itself.

We and other groups have shown that exercise when used in moderate intensity can be effective for the treatment of clinical depression.

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