I came across this article in Medical News Today, which discusses how exercise can help with depression. None of that is a surprise, of course, and as I type this entry, I’m still gross from having come back from the gym, so yay!
Here’s the interesting part of the study: Individuals who did “prescribed exercise” showed a rise in endocannabinoid levels in their blood – something typically associated with improved mood. This did not occur with people who selected their own exercise.
Wait, what?
Why would that be? Two potential explanations from the article:
One explanation could be the small number of participants and the variation in intensity levels in the preferred-intensity session. Some participants completed the preferred session at a constant, light intensity, while others varied the intensity.
Another explanation for the difference in results between the preferred and prescribed exercise sessions could be that exercising at a level that someone else prescribes has a psychological as well as a biological effect.
It’s that second explanation I want to focus on. We know that anti-depressants often have a powerful placebo effect. Placebos occur, in part, because someone expects a treatment to work. That being said…we know that exercise does, in fact, help with the treatment of depression and other mental health challenges. So that can’t be a complete explanation.
This got me thinking – what if Doctor’s began to “prescribe” other therapies? Go for a damn walk. Meditate. Eat better. And I don’t mean just give it as advice, I mean take out a little prescription pad, write something down and hand it to the patient. Would the patient be more likely to treat that prescription with more care than they would regular advice? Would they actually spend time reducing their stress levels, or just taking ten minutes out of their day to put headphones on and meditate?
I don’t know. But I think that, when you combine aspects of the placebo effect (expecting a therapy to work) with scientifically proven therapy, you’re increasing your chances of success and recovery (again, not a Doctor here, just speculating).
This entire study and line of thought has made me wonder if we shouldn’t try to get Doctors and other health care professionals to look outside of the realm of traditional prescriptions and more into the world of prescribing lifestyle changes.
As you likely know, depression rates are rising across the Western world. We can’t just rely on therapy and medication to get ourselves out of this mess. Something has to change, and I think one aspect of that chance must be revamping the way we look at therapy. Maybe this idea of “alternative prescriptions” can help?
As always, let us know what you think in the comments below!
Mike Schlossberg - Author 