ArticleBMJ open sport & exercise medicine2020
Exercise interventions for mental disorders in young people: a scoping review.
Article in BMJ open sport & exercise medicine, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 34 citations in OpenAlex.
- Associations between number of steps and health outcomes in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC public health · 2024Pooled it
- Optimization of a Mobile Transdiagnostic Emotion Regulation Intervention for University Students: A Micro-Randomized Trial.Stress and health : journal of the International Society for the Investigation of Stress · 2025Trial
- Young people's perspectives on integrating physical activity interventions into youth substance use treatment practice: a mixed-methods study.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2025Article
- Resources used by young people to overcome mental distress in deprived settings in Latin America: a qualitative study.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- A scoping review of physical activity interventions to support the mental health of students aged 16 to 25.Discover public health · 2025Review
- A scoping review of physical activity interventions in youth attending child and adolescent mental health services.Irish journal of medical science · 2024Article
- Aerobic exercise during adolescence and anxiety disorders in adulthood: A cohort study using Add Health.PloS one · 2024Article
- Review
- Cross-sectional associations between mental health indicators and social vulnerability, with physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep in urban African young women.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2022Article
- Mental well-being in young people with psychiatric disorders during the early phase of COVID-19 lockdown.PloS one · 2022Article
- Enhancing Mental Health, Well-Being and Active Lifestyles of University Students by Means of Physical Activity and Exercise Research Programs.Frontiers in public health · 2022Review
- Exercise interventions in child and adolescent mental health care: An overview of the evidence and recommendations for implementation.JCPP advances · 2021Article
- Single Session and Short-Term Exercise for Mental Health Promotion in Tertiary Students: A Scoping Review.Sports medicine - open · 2021Article
- Poor reporting of physical activity and exercise interventions in youth mental health trials: A brief report.Early intervention in psychiatry · 2021Article
- The Role of Self-Care Activities (SASS-14) in Depression (PHQ-9): Evidence From Slovakia During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Frontiers in public health · 2021Article
- Effect of Aerobic Exercise on Mental Health in Older Adults: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Review
- Physical activity and sedentary behaviour counselling: Attitudes and practices of mental health professionals.PloS one · 2021Article
- Physical activity and exercise in youth mental health promotion: a scoping review.BMJ open sport & exercise medicine · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
aimsThis scoping review determines the breadth and outcomes of controlled trials testing the effect of physical activity/exercise interventions across mental health outcomes in young people with a mental disorder.
methodsThe literature search was conducted using the open-access 'Evidence Finder', a comprehensive youth mental health-specific database that is systematically populated from MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO and Cochrane CENTRAL databases.
resultsSixteen publications were identified after meeting the following eligibility criteria: (1) participants were young people (mean age 12-25.9 years) with a mental disorder diagnosed by a trained clinician or by reaching a predefined cut score on a symptom measure, (2) interventions were exercise, (3) designs were randomised or non-randomised controlled trials, (4) outcomes were mental health related. Eight studies included young people with depression, three included people with psychosis/schizophrenia, three included people with eating disorders and two included people with anxiety. The available evidence suggests that moderate-to-vigorous-intensity exercise may be beneficial, particularly for reducing depression. The available evidence for other intervention intensities, and for other mental disorders, is mixed.
conclusionsOverall, the evidence regarding the impact of exercise interventions on a range of mental health outcomes in clinical populations of young people with various mental disorders looks promising but requires further development. Findings from this scoping review can inform the development of future exercise interventions in the youth mental health field.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.