Team sports can help the brain protect against depression

The practice of sport in childhood has long been badociated with the improvement of social skills, work ethic and respect for authority, but a new study published in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging shows that participation in team sports in particular can effectively serve an important function of mental health: protection against depression.

The researchers examined the brains of 4,000 children aged 9 to 11 and asked them about their participation in sports and their depressive symptoms. They discovered that all children active in team sports had a larger hippocampus, a region of the brain that plays an important role in memory, learning, and treating stress. The narrowing of the hippocampus has long been badociated with depression, and the researchers found that boys participating in an organized sport not only had larger hippocampal volumes, but also exhibited fewer depressive symptoms than the other children.

Among the girls, the sports team players also had larger hippocampi but no badociation with fewer depressive symptoms. Nevertheless, the importance of team sports was evident: researchers found that the correlation between sport, brain activity and mental health was greater among students who participated in organized sports as opposed to an occasional improvised basketball game or an artistic or musical activity. .

"The fact that these relationships were the strongest for team sports or structured suggests that there might be something about the combination of exercise and social support or the structure that stems from being part of a team that can be helpful in preventing or treating depression in young people, "senior author Lisa Gorham said in a press release. "The results raise fascinating opportunities for new work on the prevention and treatment of childhood depression."

This research is focused on children, but many previous studies have shown that there is also a link between mental health and team exercise in adults. A 2018 study in the Lancet Psychiatry The diary revealed that people who exercise had fewer bad mental health days than those who did not exercise, and those who participated in an organized team sport. Even less bad days of mental health. In addition, a study of 2017 in Journal of the American Osteopathic Associationn has shown that exercise with a group significantly improves quality of life and reduces stress compared to those who only do solitary exercises, such as treadmill running.

"Exercise releases biochemicals that help you connect with those you work with, and being together in a community also releases biochemicals," said Dr. Ilene Ruhoy, MD, Ph.D. biochemicals, which helps strengthen your sense of community. "

In the present study, the researchers noted that their results could not prove the causal relationship between sport activity, hippocampus size and depression, but there was clearly an badociation between the three.

Whether you are 12 or 52 years old, it is clear that there is an important link between mental health and exercise in a community. So, in addition to this gym membership, consider finding a group clbad or (better yet) joining a community softball league or an intramural flag football team. Your body and your brain will thank you.