The effects of physical activity counseling on mood among 75- to 81-year-old people: A randomized controlled trial

Objectives. To examine the effects of physical activity counseling on mood among older people unselected for their depressive symptomatology. Methods. Data are from “Screening and Counseling for Physical Activity and Mobility in Older People” project (SCAMOB), conducted in Finland during 2003–2005. SCAMOB was a 2-year single-blinded randomized controlled trial among 624 participants 75 years and older randomized into physical activity counseling group and control group. Depressive symptoms were assessed at baseline and after 24 months using Center for the Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Results. Among all the study participants, no effect of intervention was observed. However, among subgroup with minor depressive symptoms at baseline, a significant treatment effect was observed, where depressive symptoms decreased in the intervention group and increased in the control group. Conclusions. These findings suggest that physical activity counseling may reduce depression among those with minor depressive symptoms, which warrants for future studies.