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A meta-meta-analysis of the effect of physical activity on depression and anxiety in non-clinical adult populations
Open accessAbstract
Amidst strong efforts to promote the therapeutic benefits of physical activity for reducing depression and anxiety in clinical populations, little focus has been directed towards the mental health benefits of activity for non-clinical populations. The objective of this meta-meta-analysis was to systematically aggregate and quantify high-quality meta-analytic findings of the effects of physical activity on depression and anxiety for non-clinical populations. A systematic search identified eight meta-analytic outcomes of randomised trials that investigated the effects of physical activity on depression or anxiety. The subsequent meta-meta-analyses were based on a total of 92 studies with 4310 participants for the effect of physical activity on depression and 306 study effects with 10,755 participants for the effect of physical activity on anxiety. Physical activity reduced depression by a medium effect [standardised mean difference (SMD) = -0.50; 95% CI: -0.93 to -0.06] and anxiety by a small effect (SMD = -0.38; 95% CI: -0.66 to -0.11). Neither effect showed significant heterogeneity across meta-analyses. These findings represent a comprehensive body of high-quality evidence that physical activity reduces depression and anxiety in non-clinical populations.
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“for patients with depression, exercise can be used as a supplement to traditional therapy [70–72].”
From Systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of exercise on depression in adolescents (2022) · cites this paper as [72]
In the citing paper
“Current research generally indicates that for people with depressive symptoms, physical exercise is as effective as antidepressant drugs and psychotherapy”
From Systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of exercise on depression in adolescents (2022) · cites this paper as [72]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Rebar, A. L., Stanton, R., Geard, D., Short, C., Duncan, M. J., & Vandelanotte, C.
- Affiliations
- Central Queensland University (AU)
- Freemasons Foundation Centre for Men's Health (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Rebar, Amanda L.
- Venue
- Health Psychology Review
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2015-07-03
- Volume
- 9
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 366-378
- ISSN
- 1743-7199 (ISSN-L)
- 1743-7202
- OpenAlex
- W2012435631
- Cited by
- 1,323
- References
- 60
- Citations by year
- 2026: 156 · 2025: 146 · 2024: 144 · 2023: 208 · 2022: 130 · 2021: 172 · 2020: 159 · 2019: 72 · 2018: 73 · 2017: 32 · 2016: 24 · 2015: 7
- FWCI
- 5.54
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- figshare.com
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- Health Psychology Review (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- ResearchOnline at James Cook University (James Cook University) (submittedVersion)
- Acquire (CQUniversity) (submittedVersion)
- Adelaide Research & Scholarship (AR&S) (University of Adelaide) (submittedVersion)
- eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- NOVA (University of Newcastle Australia) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Heart Foundation of Australia (Future Leadership Fellowship, ID: 100029)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Physical Activity and Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiac Health and Mental Health
- Keywords
- physical activity, depression, anxiety, non-clinical population, mental health, exercise intervention, meta-meta-analysis
- MeSH terms
- Anxiety, Depression, Exercise Therapy, Humans, Mental Health, Exercise, Treatment Outcome
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