Healthy body, healthy mind: the impact of exercise on mental health

American Fitness, July-August, 1996 by Anne Clifford Bradley

Many studies and scholarly articles' praise the physical benefits of consistent exercise. Regular activity helps participants achieve and maintain healthy body weight and composition, raises beneficial cholesterol levels, assists in the treatment of Type 11 diabetes, and reduces the risk of osteoporosis, heart disease and some types of cancer. In addition, exercise helps reduce premenstrual distress, constipation, insomnia and varicose veins.

Participants also cite stress reduction and increased ability to cope in stressful situations, in addition to positive physical changes, as major reasons for exercising regularly. They feel better physically and emotionally, and are able to handle crises more effectively and rationally.

Although it is difficult to imagine any negative components of fitness, a few adverse psychological aspects exist. For example, rather than reducing stressful situations, exercise can manifest them and exacerbate a preexisting mental health disorder.

Mental Health Disorders

Mental health runs along a continuum, with health and wellness on one end and disabling emotional disorders on the other. In between are gradations in constant flux. An individual can feel relaxed and content one day and full of anxiety due to a stressful event the next.

During the course of our lives, we all undergo physical and mental stress, and each of us responds differently. How we. respond emotionally to stressful situations is based upon a set of variables. These variables include frequency, intensity, duration, age of initial onset, and mode of the stressor, as well as family history and genetics.

Using these guidelines, mental health professionals can determine whether an emotional response to a stressful life situation is appropriate, or if the person may be experiencing an episode of psychopathology (abnormal or inappropriate behavior or thoughts). Investigating how long a person has had symptoms, how often they occur, intensity of feelings, thoughts or behaviors, age of initial onset, how the symptoms present themselves and whether there is a family history of mental health disorders or disturbances can help in making a diagnosis.

Often, a due to a real disorder is the extent to which symptoms affect or rule a person's life. If many aspects of a person's life are affected by or revolve around symptoms or relief of symptoms, it bears more investigation.

It is important to remember everyone experiences varying degrees of emotional stress throughout life, and no one is exempt from pain, tragedy and heartache. Careful examination can help determine when a person has crossed the line from garden variety stress and pain to a characterizable mental health disorder.

Many professionals in the mental health field refer to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders when making diagnose's. The manual utilizes the variable approach in investigating symptomology, and furnishes clear guidelines for diagnoses.

Using the variable approach, psychologists determine whether the sadness a person is experiencing is an appropriate response to a recent loss or whether it may be one of the symptoms of major or clinical depression. Some of the diagnosable disorders include affective or mood disorders such as depression or, manic depression, anxiety and adjustment disorders, psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsive and eating disorders.

The determination of a disorder has tremendous influence on treatment modality. Often, psychotherapists or psychiatrists suggest some form of exercise in conjunction with professional treatment depending on the type of the disorder.

Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has estimated that by the first year of college, 5 to 18% of women and .4% of men have a history of bulimia or binge eating patterns, and that as many as one in 100 females between the ages of 12 and 18 have anorexia. Individuals whose psychopathology is fueled and exacerbated by exercise include those with eating disorders, distorted body images and some obsessive-compulsives.

The NCHS does not address the growing number of people who experience disordered eating and exercise patterns (using exercise as a way to eliminate food or reduce anxiety associated with a mental health disorder). For those afflicted, exercise becomes an extension of their mental health disorder. The health club is a place where they punish themselves for not living up to their perception of thin and image of perfection. Often, they are women. The reasons and contributing factors are many--family or relationship disturbances, loss of a loved one, sexual trauma or abuse, societal influences or biochemical disturbances.

Psychological Benefits

With up to 20% of the American population suffering a serious affective or mood disorder, depression being the most common, there has been a significant amount of research on the emotional advantages of exercise. Fortunately, there are more psychological benefits than costs.