Moderate Vigorous Physical Activity for Mental Health in Sedentary Middle-Aged Adults

Anxiety and depression affect 32.3% of United States' adults. Guideline-based moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) enhances mental health by increasing brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and an array of neuroendocrine factors that also mitigate cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. We examined the response of 14 variables, including depression (Beck Depression Inventory-II), anxiety (Beck Anxiety Inventory), resilience (Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale [CD-RISC]), serum BDNF, and associated CVD risk factors (e.g., HbA1c, body composition, waist circumference) in sedentary middle-aged adults (n=29, M_AGE = 51.31 ± 6.31) to a 4-week MVPA regimen. Hotelling's T₂ test showed moderate evidence to indicate the mean vectors for the 14 study variables that differed before and after MVPA (p=0.022). Pre- post-VO₂peak, measured by the Åstrand-Rhyming Cycle Ergometer Test, increased by 5.93% (p=0.143). HbA1c decreased slightly following the intervention (-1.69%, p=0.052) across all subjects and by 3.7% (from 5.54±0.48 to 5.34±0.68) in those (n=20) who achieved MVPA guidelines in 4 weeks. However, neither BDNF nor body composition consistently improved following MVPA. Poisson regression revealed that when age increased, depression (p=0.042) decreased, and resilience increased (p=0.032). Alternatively, increases in body mass index (BMI) were associated with increases in depression (<0.001) and anxiety (p=0.017) plus decreased resilience (p=0.037). Findings indicate MVPA consistent with the U.S. PA Guidelines in sedentary middle-aged adults may decrease depression, HbA1c, and CVD risk and should be a priority amongst providers. Studies involving a larger sample and longer duration are warranted to establish specific relationships between mental health and CVD risk in middle-aged adults.