Ma Shaodi, Liu Haixia, Xie Peng, Sun Chenyu, Meng Muzi, Jiang Yuemeng, Wu Birong, Gao Juan, Feng Linya, Xia Weihang, Qu Guangbo, Sun Yehuan
Anhui Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hefei, 230601, Anhui, P. R. China.
Department of Public Health and Pathogen Biology, School of Life Sciences, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, 230012, Anhui, P. R. China.
Int J Behav Med. 2025 Sep 23. doi: 10.1007/s12529-025-10397-4.
Depression is the second most prevalent mental disease among adolescents, yet only a small percentage seek or receive treatment for the disease. Physical activity (PA) interventions hold promise as an alternative or adjunct to clinical treatment for depression. However, previous studies have been inconsistent regarding the relationship between PA and depressive symptoms in children and adolescents. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of PA intervention on depressive symptoms in children and adolescents through a meta-analysis.
Literature from 10 electronic databases and 4 registries was systematically searched. Combined estimates (standardized mean difference, SMD) and 95% CIs were calculated using a random-effects model to assess the effect of PA on depressive symptoms in adolescents. Relevant subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses were also performed.
Results showed that PA improved depressive symptoms in children and adolescents (SMD = -0.707, 95% CI: -0.901 to -0.514). Subgroup analyses showed that PA improved adolescent depressive symptoms in different regions, different types of PA, moderate- to vigorous-intensity PA, different single-session time PA, different frequency PA, and different duration PA.
PA interventions could be used to reduce depressive symptoms in children and adolescents. A mixed program and vigorous-intensity PA intervention was the most effective in improving depressive symptoms in children and adolescents. The selection of a 4 to 8-week, no less than 4 times per week, single-session PA program of no more than 30 min may yield desirable results.
抑郁症是青少年中第二常见的精神疾病，但只有一小部分患者寻求或接受该疾病的治疗。体育活动（PA）干预有望成为抑郁症临床治疗的替代或辅助方法。然而，先前关于儿童和青少年体育活动与抑郁症状之间关系的研究结果并不一致。本研究的目的是通过荟萃分析评估体育活动干预对儿童和青少年抑郁症状的影响。
系统检索了10个电子数据库和4个注册库中的文献。使用随机效应模型计算合并效应量（标准化均值差，SMD）和95%置信区间（CI），以评估体育活动对青少年抑郁症状的影响。还进行了相关的亚组分析和敏感性分析。
结果表明，体育活动改善了儿童和青少年的抑郁症状（SMD = -0.707，95%CI：-0.901至-0.514）。亚组分析表明，体育活动在不同地区、不同类型的体育活动、中等至剧烈强度的体育活动、不同单次时长的体育活动、不同频率的体育活动以及不同持续时间的体育活动中均改善了青少年的抑郁症状。
体育活动干预可用于减轻儿童和青少年的抑郁症状。混合项目和高强度体育活动干预对改善儿童和青少年的抑郁症状最为有效。选择为期4至8周、每周不少于4次、单次时长不超过30分钟的体育活动项目可能会取得理想的效果。
