We’re Treating Stress, Anxiety and Depression All Wrong
One of the best remedies for mental health conditions is obvious but rarely prescribed
More than half of U.S. doctors receive various forms of payment — ranging from consulting fees to travel and gifts — from pharmaceutical companies, whose industry spends more than $2 billion a year to encourage them to write drug prescriptions. No surprise, doctors who take this money prescribe more of a company’s products. Perhaps this helps explain why the number of people taking prescription antidepressants rose 15% between 2015 and 2019, soaring 38% in teenagers and raising serious concerns among many medical and scientific experts.
Meanwhile, one of the best treatments for stress, anxiety and depression — one that’s inexpensive and whose side effects are almost entirely positive — is well known to scientists but rarely prescribed by doctors.
“Physical activity is highly beneficial for improving symptoms of depression, anxiety and distress across a wide range of adult populations, including the general population, people with diagnosed mental health disorders and people with chronic disease,” according to a comprehensive new review of scientific research. “Physical activity should be a mainstay approach in the management of depression, anxiety and…
