Physical Activity, Exercise, and Mental Disorders of Older Adults

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

Physical Activity, Exercise, and Mental Disorders of Older AdultsAging is associated with an increased risk of psychiatric issues, including depression. 1 The global population of older adults aged ≥60 years is estimated to reach 1.4 billion by 2030 and further increase to 2.1 billion by 2050.Of this population, about 80% will live in low-and middle-income countries by 2050. 2 On the other hand, more than 20% of older adults aged ≥60 years were reported to have suffered from a mental disorder.2 The burden of mental disorders is further exacerbated by a high prevalence of comorbid somatic disorders, causing a significantly reduced life expectancy of 15-20 years compared to the general population. 2 The costs associated with mental health care, particularly those for medication-based treatments, have increased markedly in the past few decades.3 On the other hand, a significant barrier to mental disorder treatment exists for many dealing with depression, with only 51% of those in high-income countries and 20% in low-and lower-middle-income countries having access to necessary mental health care.4 It is estimated that the annual global costs of mental disorders will increase to $6 trillion USD from $2.5 trillion USD by 2030.5 In addition, the long-term effects of these medication-based treatments are questioned because some of these treatments do not lead to clinically meaningful improvement in mental health over the long term, and side effects such as increased blood glucose concentration and weight gain have been reported.