A scoping review of physical activity interventions to support the mental health of students aged 16 to 25

The mental health of young people is a growing public health concern. While physical activity has both physical and mental health benefits, there is limited evidence on physical activity interventions to improve the mental health of young people aged 16 to 25. We aimed to scope the types and design of physical activity interventions in educational settings that target mental health outcomes for this group.

A systematic search was conducted for articles published from 2015 to January 2025. References were screened and included for data extraction if they reported the effects of a physical activity-based intervention on mental health-related outcomes in students aged 16 to 25 in high income countries. Findings were reported according to PRISMA extension for scoping reviews.

A total of 22,437 records were identified and 51 studies met the inclusion criteria. Most were conducted in the USA (n = 16); just one study was conducted in the UK. Most were conducted in post-secondary settings like universities (n = 39) with less focus on older adolescents in upper secondary education (n = 12). Twenty studies were either RCTs or cluster-RCTs. Aerobic exercise (n = 26) and yoga (n = 15) were the most common physical activity interventions. Beneficial effects of the physical activity-based interventions were reported for the majority of the twenty-eight mental health outcomes assessed, notably depressive symptoms, anxiety and stress.

There was considerable heterogeneity in design of interventions, components used and how mental health was measured. There was a lack of evidence on inequalities in outcomes including differences by gender or socioeconomic position. The evidence examined in this review suggests physical activity-based interventions within education settings could be an effective and feasible option to support a range of mental health outcomes in students aged 16 to 25. However, several under-researched areas were identified, including a need for more well-designed, high-quality studies to examine the mental health effects of physical activity interventions within older adolescent students, and examining the differences between genders and sub-groups of young people such as those from lower SES backgrounds or with learning or physical disabilities.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12982-025-00933-8.