Since the devastating news of Robin Williams' suicide, we are learning more about his long battle with depression, as well as substance abuse. Sometimes mental health issues and substance abuse go hand in hand.
Williams had a very private side but was open about some of his problems. Unfortunately, it seems like the depth of his pain may have been one of his secrets. He was quite young when his mental health issues began, as are many others who suffer from this often chronic, and sometimes deadly, disease.
Depression can affect anyone, at any age. Even young children can be affected and it can become quite serious by their teen years.
We read about middle school children driven to suicide from abuse at home or bullying by their peers. Teachers are on the lookout for signs but they are not always able to identify this in students, even in those they know well.
Researcher Camilo Ruggero, PhD, of the University of North Texas presented a study he conducted to the American Psychological Association's 122nd Annual Convention recently. His study looked at the effect of physical fitness on the mental health of boys and girls as they prepared for seventh grade.
Nearly 450 children were studied from a region in North Texas. Of this group, 55 percent were girls and 45 percent were boys. The students were 89 percent white and 9 percent African-American, with 27 percent also identifying themselves as Hispanic.
For physical fitness testing, the children ran short sprints, had their body mass index monitored, were weighed, and answered questionnaires about their levels of physical fitness as well as questions about depression.
Ruggero found that for girls especially, those who were fit in sixth grade showed fewer signs of depression by seventh grade if they had good physical fitness. Boys fared the same on a slightly lower scale.
A troubling statistic was found, however. It was seen that 28 percent of the girls in sixth grade and 29 percent in seventh grade had increased signs of depression. The researchers found that the most powerful predictor of depression in seventh grade was having had symptoms of depression in sixth grade.
But when this and other factors were statistically controlled for in the study, physical fitness was very important in the levels of depression among girls in particular and boys to a lesser extent.
Simply put, the fitter the children were, the less likely they were to experience depression.
"Depression that begins at this time can lead to chronic or recurring depression in later years," Ruggero said.
"Fitness programs are one way to help prevent depression in middle-schoolers, but schools should also use other interventions, such as one-on-one or group therapy, that more directly address symptom treatment among depressed adolescents."
Teenagers can be secretive at times, and this is normal. They can be experiencing romantic crushes they don’t want to share with their parents, friendship issues and in general want some separation from them.
Most of this is a normal transition into young adulthood but some moods cannot be put down to normal teenage behavior. There are signs of depression that parents need to be on the lookout for.
Watch the EmpowHER video interview "How to recognize depression in teenagers - Howdini" on this topic. A transcript is available below the video.
Fitness expert Mark Dilworth has also written for EmpowHER on the benefits of exercise for those with depression.
Dilworth said that “ previous research has proven that regular exercise is an effective, but often underused, treatment for mild to moderate depression. Regular exercise has been proven to:
"- Reduce stress, anxiety, and depression
"- Boost self-esteem
"- Improve sleep"
He also recommends that trainers be more aware of how exercise can help clients with depression. You can read his complete article "Relieve Depression Symptoms with Exercise, Not Self Medication".
Sources:
American Psychological Association. "Depression in young adolescence can be prevented by physical fitness." Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 11 Aug. 2014. Web. Retrieved 15 Aug. 2014.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/280788.php
EmpowHER.com. Wellness. Fitness. “Relieve Depression Symptoms with Exercise, Not Self-Medication.” Web. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
https://www.empowher.com/fitness/content/relieve-depression-symptoms-exe...
Reviewed August 19, 2014
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith