Culture

Mental Health and Cardiovascular Disease Risk: What is the role of physical activity?

Dr Mark Hamer of UCL at ENHS Lecture Room, Centre for Sport, Exercise and Health, Tyndall Avenue, University of Bristol on 18^th May 2011.

m.hamer@ucl.ac.uk

Mental health accounts for 20% of the disease burden in the European Area and globally.

·      This is put down to stress but Mark Hamer thinks there may be other causes.

§  It is thought to be linked to ageing

There are two available treatment options for mental health:

·      Anti-depressant drugs

·      CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy)

Depression is linked to heart disease

·      There is evidence that tricyclic and other anti-depressants can increase the risk of heart disease by 35%

·      There is poor scientific rigour in the drug trials carried out which is why there is much ambiguity

-          There is generally a 20% reduction in recurrence of depression treated with anti-depressants.

A slow gait while walking is shown to give a 2.5 times increase in the incidence of depression compared to those who walk with a fast gait.

·      This is compounded when age is a factor in the data differentiating between the over 70 and under 70 year old age groups

-          Depressed people have a 24% increase in the risk of death generally.

Inflammation

1. c-reactive proteins in inflammation leading to cardiovascular problems
2. Exercise training can lower and control inflammation

-          People ‘more dependant’ on exercise have larger mood disturbances following exercise withdrawal.

-          Allegedly mental health is linked to ‘sedentary behaviour’.

-          Mark Hamer says that there is data to show that lots of TV watching makes you “more vulnerable to mental health”.