How much physical activity does it take to boost your mental health?

How Much Physical Activity Does It Take to Boost Mental Health? Research has shown that physical activity can improve depression symptoms and quality of life. Now, a study in Preventive Medicine examined the relationship between mental health and physical activity to determine the optimal amount of exercise needed to maintain or improve mental health based on age, gender, and overall physical h... ealth. The study looked at responses from over 7,000 people collected during the U.S. Health Information National Trends Survey of 2008. Results showed that people who exercised between 2 ½ and 7 ½ hours per week were more likely to report better mental health state than people who didn't exercise. Public health recommendations advice most adults to get at least 150 minutes, or 2 ½ hours, of moderate physical activity per week. Kim YS, Park YS, Allegrante JP, Marks R, Ok H, Ok Cho K, Garber CE. Relationship between physical activity and general mental health. Prev Med. 2012 Sep 7. pii: S0091-7435(12)00394-5. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2012.08.021. [Epub ahead of print]