Exploring the Association Between Physical Activity and Risk of Mental Health Disorders in Saudi Arabian Adults: Cross-sectional Study

BACKGROUND: The relationship between physical activity and mental health, especially the symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), has received increasing attention in recent years. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore the association between fulfilling the World Health Organization (WHO) global recommendations on physical activity and the risk and symptoms of MDD and GAD in the Saudi population. METHODS: This study was a secondary analysis of data from a large nationwide cross-sectional survey conducted via phone interviews in June and July 2020. In this study, a proportional quota sampling technique was used to obtain an equal distribution of participants, stratified by age and gender, across the 13 regions of Saudi Arabia. The main mental health screening tool used for the risk of MDD was the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Risk of GAD was measured using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) scale. Participants self-reported whether they fulfill the WHO global recommendations on (1) moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity (MIPA) and (2) vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity (VIPA). The results were then analyzed based on the following two categories: fulfilling the WHO global recommendations or not. RESULTS: The data analysis included 8333 participants recruited in the main study between June and July 2020. The response rate was 81.45% (8333/10,231). Of them, 50.3% (4192/8333) were female, and the mean age was 36.5 years, with a median age of 36 years and a range from 18 to 90 years. The average total PHQ-9 score was 5.61, and the average total GAD-7 score was 4.18. For men, the average total PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores were associated with fulfilling recommendations for MIPA; however, there were no associations for VIPA in both sexes. Fulfilling the WHO’s recommendations for MIPA was associated with considerably fewer depressive symptoms in six of the nine items in the PHQ-9. Moreover, fulfilling recommendations for MIPA was associated with considerably fewer anxiety symptoms in six of the seven items in the GAD-7. However, fulfilling recommendations for VIPA was significantly associated with more depressive symptoms in one of the PHQ-9 items (“Thoughts that you would be better off dead or thoughts of hurting yourself in some way;” P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study has shown that fulfilling guidelines on MIPA is associated with less overall risk of MDD and GAD in males and fewer depressive and anxiety symptoms generally in a nonclinical population. In the general population, an increase in MIPA may improve well-being and general mental health.