About this Research Topic
The world has been more stressful and fuller of uncertainty, especially after the outbreak of COVID-19. While social distancing policies, quarantine and lockdowns are useful in terms of infection prevention for the pandemic of COVID-19, the restrictive practices inevitably aggregate stress and inactive lifestyles, which has had a devastating effect on mental health outcomes. Mental disorders such as depressive and anxiety disorders, and cognitive impairment in elderly people are increasingly common in the post-pandemic era. Physical activity is a crucial component of a healthy lifestyle and confers mental health benefits. However, despite strong evidence and recommendations of physical activity for the normal population, people with the risk of mental disorders are less properly advised on this matter, together with concerns regarding the potential risks and difficulties of uptake and adherence to physical activity. For instance, depressive symptoms have been found to inhibit participation in physical activity and have a negative effect on the adherence to physical activity regimens recommended by physicians, owing to feelings of insufficient energy and lack of interest and motivation.
In this Research Topic, we aim to investigate: (1) the benefits that people affected by mental disorders (e.g. depression, anxiety, cognitive impairment) gain from physical activity, and the risks or barriers they encounter when participating in exercises (e.g. sports injury, sports accident, lack of compliance); (2) exercise or physical activity prescriptions for preventive or therapeutic purposes of mental disorders, especially for people who are limited in indoor living space (e.g. people in quarantine or telecommuting, people receive medical treatment or nursery care at home for the scarceness of medical resources).
This Research Topic hopes to attract studies providing cutting edge research that enhances our evidence base related to the benefits, risks and prescription of physical activity in people affected by mental disorders. We welcome studies that focus on the following lines of inquiry:
• Original research, systematic review and meta-analysis examining the benefits or risks and the potential mechanisms of physical activity in people with mental disorders.
• Intervention studies, as well as guideline studies shed light on the prescription of physical activity for preventive or therapeutic purposes of mental disorders.
• Longitudinal or cross-sectional studies demonstrating physical activity pattern of people affected by mental disorders.
• Process evaluation reporting challenges, facilitators, and barriers to the implementation of physical activity interventions on mental disorders in healthcare and the wider community context.
In this Research Topic, we aim to investigate: (1) the benefits that people affected by mental disorders (e.g. depression, anxiety, cognitive impairment) gain from physical activity, and the risks or barriers they encounter when participating in exercises (e.g. sports injury, sports accident, lack of compliance); (2) exercise or physical activity prescriptions for preventive or therapeutic purposes of mental disorders, especially for people who are limited in indoor living space (e.g. people in quarantine or telecommuting, people receive medical treatment or nursery care at home for the scarceness of medical resources).
This Research Topic hopes to attract studies providing cutting edge research that enhances our evidence base related to the benefits, risks and prescription of physical activity in people affected by mental disorders. We welcome studies that focus on the following lines of inquiry:
• Original research, systematic review and meta-analysis examining the benefits or risks and the potential mechanisms of physical activity in people with mental disorders.
• Intervention studies, as well as guideline studies shed light on the prescription of physical activity for preventive or therapeutic purposes of mental disorders.
• Longitudinal or cross-sectional studies demonstrating physical activity pattern of people affected by mental disorders.
• Process evaluation reporting challenges, facilitators, and barriers to the implementation of physical activity interventions on mental disorders in healthcare and the wider community context.
Keywords: physical activity, sports, mental disorders, depression, anxiety, cognitive impairment, exercise prescription, health promotion
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
