Mass media representations of the evidence as a possible deterrent to recommending exercise for the treatment of depression: Lessons five years after the extraordinary case of TREAD-UK

Ekkekakis, Panteleimon; Hartman, Mark E.; Ladwig, Matthew A.

doi:10.1080/02640414.2018.1423856

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…Recent large scale observational research53 highlights that physical activity is significantly and meaningfully associated with mental health (1.49 fewer days of poor mental health in the past month). However, randomized controlled trial evidence from ERSs54 initially appear less supportive of a role for physical activity and exercise in mental health, in this case depression; though, recent analysis suggests that many studies and media portrayals of the role of physical activity and exercise are misrepresented 55. Other studies have shown reductions in anxiety and depression from ERSs in both those with and without prior mental health issues 22 56.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of exercise referral schemes upon health and well-being: initial observational insights using individual patient data meta-analysis from the National Referral Database

Wade

Mann²,

Copeland

et al. 2019

J Epidemiol Community Health

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ObjectivesTo examine if exercise referral schemes (ERSs) are associated with meaningful changes in health and well-being in a large cohort of individuals throughout England, Scotland, and Wales from the National Referral Database.MethodsData were obtained from 23 731 participants from 13 different ERSs lasting 6 weeks to 3 months. Changes from pre- to post-ERS in health and well-being outcomes were examined including body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP)), resting heart rate (RHR), short Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS), WHO Well-Being Index (WHO-5), Exercise Related Quality of Life scale (ERQoL), and Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale (ESES). Two-stage individual patient data meta-analysis was used to generate effect estimates.ResultsEstimates (95% CIs) revealed statistically significant changes occurred compared with point nulls for BMI (−0.55 kg.m2 (−0.69 to −0.41)), SBP (−2.95 mmHg (−3.97 to −1.92)), SWEMWBS (2.99 pts (1.61 to 4.36)), WHO-5 (8.78 pts (6.84 to 10.63)), ERQoL (15.26 pts (4.71 to 25.82)), and ESES (2.58 pts (1.76 to 3.40)), but not RHR (0.22 fc (−1.57 to 1.12)) or DBP (−0.93 mmHg (−1.51 to −0.35)). However, comparisons of estimates (95% CIs) against null intervals suggested the majority of outcomes may not improve meaningfully.ConclusionsWe considered whether meaningful health and well-being changes occur in people who are undergoing ERSs. These results demonstrate that, although many health and well-being outcomes improved, the changes did not achieve meaningful levels. This suggests the need to consider the implementation of ERSs more critically to discern how to maximise their effectiveness.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of exercise referral schemes upon health and well-being: initial observational insights using individual patient data meta-analysis from the National Referral Database

Wade

Mann²,

Copeland

et al. 2019

J Epidemiol Community Health

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“…Of the 14 relevant studies, eight addressed physical activity misinformation pertaining to specific diseases or conditions (Ekkekakis et al, 2018;Heisinger et al, 2021;Kanthawala et al, 2016;Kocyigit et al, 2019;Kunze et al, 2020;Nagpal et al, 2021;Snyder et al, 2020;Yildiz & Toros, 2021), four involved general physical activity and messaging (Borah & Xiao, 2018;Marocolo et al, 2021;Michelini, 2017;Ori et al, 2021), one focused on weight loss (Gonzalez, 2018), and one study addressed workplace sitting vs. standing guidelines (Chau et al, 2018).…”

Section: Physical Activity Topicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Physical activity topics for specific diseases and conditions included physical activity for depression (Ekkekakis et al, 2018), diabetes (Kanthawala et al, 2016), ankylosing spondylitis (Kocyigit et al, 2019), breast feeding women (Snyder et al, 2020), pregnancy (Nagpal et al, 2021), vestibular rehabilitation (Yildiz & Toros, 2021), meniscus injury (Kunze et al, 2020), and lumbar disc herniation rehabilitation (Heisinger et al, 2021).…”

Section: Physical Activity Topicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, only one article attempted to measure the spread of physical activity misinformation online. Ekkekakis et al (2018) analyzed Google search trends following a media campaign spreading misinterpreted scientific findings of a study of the effects of exercise on depression, finding a sharp increase in relevant searches of 357% in the month of the campaign, as compared to the subsequent five years.…”

Section: Prevalence Reach and Spreadmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Physical Activity Misinformation on Social Media and Digital Mediums: Systematic Review

Thomas¹,

Li²,

Yu³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Online media sources are prominent ways in which health information is spread. The accuracy and credibility of such sources ranges widely, with misleading statements, misreported results of studies, and lack of references causing health misinformation to become a growing problem. Prior research on health-related misinformation related to topics including vaccines, nutrition, and cancer, however, has excluded physical activity despite it being highly searched and discussed online. This systematic review was designed to synthesize the existing literature focused on physical activity misinformation online in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus databases were searched for records published between January 2016 and December 2021, which yielded 3,217 articles. After reviewing titles and abstracts, independent reviewers selected on 117 articles for full-text review. Fourteen articles met full inclusion criteria. Of those, eight addressed physical activity misinformation pertaining to specific diseases or conditions, four involved general physical activity messaging and believability, one focused on weight-loss, and one addressed workplace sitting guidelines. The social media platforms YouTube (n=4), Facebook (n=2), and Instagram (n=1) were studied, whereas other articles (n=7) analyzed media that hadn't explicitly been posted to social media but could be shared widely online. Four articles reported research with actively recruited participants and the remaining 10 articles analyzed readily available online content including news articles, websites, magazine articles and advertisements, or social media. Nine articles reported at least one measure of misinformation prevalence, while six reported a metric of reach, and only one study reported a measure of misinformation spread. Only two articles explicitly addressed the spread of physical activity misinformation online. Given the ubiquity of physical activity information online and the high potential for misinformation, we found the number of relevant articles to be lower than expected which warrants further investigation into the extent and effects of physical activity misinformation online.

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“…Despite the beneficial effects exercise can have on depressive symptoms, adherence to exercise programs among depressed individuals is low, however, adherence may depend on factors such as tobacco use, excessive alcohol intake, and flexibility with work schedules (Helgadóttir et al, 2018). Unfortunately, exercise programs for depression may not be prescribed by physicians due to the inaccurate reporting of findings of these programs by media sources (Ekkekakis et al, 2018).…”

Section: Exercise and Depressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Risk to Resilience: How Lifestyle Factors Interact with Early-Life Trauma, Genetic Polymorphisms, and Stress, in Predicting Risk for Depression

Howell¹

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Despite the link that risk factors, such as early-life stressors and genetic polymorphisms, have with the development of depressive symptoms, not every individual who is 'at risk' develops this disorder. It has been suggested that lifestyle factors, such as diet and exercise, may play a critical role in this regard. To date, there have been few reports examining the interactions between these lifestyle factors and other risk factors in promoting depressive features. The purpose of the present investigation was to assess the moderating effects of dietary pattern and exercise frequency, in the relations between stressors experienced early in life and psychological outcomes (depressive symptoms and creative problem solving), as well as current stressors and a biological outcome (cortisol response). In addition, the present investigation sought to examine whether these lifestyle variables might interact with immune related gene mutations, in predicting depressive symptoms and other related measures (executive functioning, coping flexibility, and coping endorsement), as both depression and these lifestyle factors are related to immune functioning.In Study 1 (N=278), physical trauma was negatively related to performance on the Remote Associates Test, a measure of creative problem solving, but this relation only existed for individuals who consumed smaller amounts of healthy foods. It was also found that sexual trauma was positively related to depressive symptoms, but this relation was stronger among participants who consumed greater amounts of unhealthy foods. Study 2 (N=163) demonstrated that dietary patterns interact with immune related genetic polymorphisms and sex, in predicting depressive symptoms, coping flexibility, and coping strategy endorsement. Building upon the findings of the previous study, Study 3 (N=144) indicated that diet and exercise interacted with immune related polymorphisms and sex, in predicting performance on the Iowa Gambling Task iii (a measure of executive functioning). Finally, Study 4 (N=81) showed that adherence to an unhealthy dietary pattern was associated with elevated levels of cortisol in response to the Trier Social Stress Test. Together, these studies suggest that dietary pattern and exercise habits, can interact with stressors (both current and past) and immune related polymorphisms, in predicting risk for depression.iv

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Mass media representations of the evidence as a possible deterrent to recommending exercise for the treatment of depression: Lessons five years after the extraordinary case of TREAD-UK

Cited by 7 publications

References 84 publications

Effect of exercise referral schemes upon health and well-being: initial observational insights using individual patient data meta-analysis from the National Referral Database

Effect of exercise referral schemes upon health and well-being: initial observational insights using individual patient data meta-analysis from the National Referral Database

Physical Activity Misinformation on Social Media and Digital Mediums: Systematic Review

From Risk to Resilience: How Lifestyle Factors Interact with Early-Life Trauma, Genetic Polymorphisms, and Stress, in Predicting Risk for Depression

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