HealthDay Reporter

In a new study, an international team of researchers analyzed data from 49 studies that included nearly 267,000 people in North America, Europe and Oceania. The study participants did not have any mental illnesses and were followed for an average of more than seven years.

High levels of physical activity were associated with a lower risk of depression in all age groups during the follow-up, the investigators found. However, the new study was not designed to prove that exercise actually caused depression risk to drop.

“This is the first global meta-analysis to establish that engaging in physical activity is beneficial for protecting the general population from developing depression,” said study author Felipe Barreto Schuch, a professor at Universidade La Salle in Brazil. more here: https://www.webmd.com/depression/news/20180425/exercise-your-blues-away?src=RSS_PUBLIC