Physical activity mitigates the link between adverse childhood experiences and depression among U.S. adults

• Published in: PloS one 2022-10, Vol.17 (10), p.e0275185-e0275185
• Main Authors: Royer, Michael F, Wharton, Christopher
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adults; Adverse childhood experiences; Biology and Life Sciences; Cancer; Cardiovascular disease; Chi-square test; Child abuse; Childhood; Children; Chronic illnesses; Cross-sectional studies; Depression, Mental; Diabetes; Diagnosis; Drug abuse; Exercise; Health aspects; Health behavior; Health surveillance; Hypotheses; Imprisonment; Medicine and Health Sciences; Mental depression; Mental disorders; Mental health; Obesity; Physical activity; Physical fitness; Psychological aspects; Regression analysis; Regression models; Risk analysis; Risk factors; Risk taking; Social Sciences; Social support; Statistical tests; Substance use disorder; Suicides & suicide attempts; Surveillance systems
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275185

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) include potentially traumatic exposures to neglect, abuse, and household problems involving substance abuse, mental illness, divorce, incarceration, and death. Past study findings suggest ACEs contribute to depression, while physical activity alleviates depression. Little is known about the link between ACEs and physical activity as it relates to depression among U.S. adults. This research had a primary objective of determining the role of physical activity within the link between ACEs and depression. The significance of this study involves examining physical activity as a form of behavioral medicine. Data from the 2020 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System were fit to Pearson chi-square and multivariable logistic regression models to examine the links between ACEs and depression, ACEs and physical activity, and physical activity and depression among U.S. adults ages 18-and-older (n = 117,204) from 21 states and the District of Columbia, while also determining whether physical activity attenuates the association between ACEs and depression. This research addressed a critical knowledge gap concerning how ACEs and physical activity contribute to depression outcomes among U.S. adults. Findings suggest physical activity mitigates the effect of ACEs on depression. Future studies should apply physical activity interventions to alleviate depression among U.S. adults with high ACEs.