Effects of Mood Regulation on Sociodemographic Status, Exercise Pattern, and Physical Conditions of Chinese Adults and the Elderly

OBJECTIVE: This study focused on mood regulations and their association with sociodemographic status, exercise pattern, and physical conditions of adults and older adults in China who did not undergo interventions. METHOD: Data were based on the 2016 to 2018 Guangdong National Physique Monitoring data, in which 5242 participants aged 20-69 years were recruited. Multiple statistical analysis methods, such as descriptive and logistic regression analyses, were used to study each exercise motivation and its association with influencing factors, including sociodemographic characteristics, exercise measurements, and physical conditions. An exercise index for mental health was also used to investigate the number and types of people who were more likely to meet the index. RESULTS: We observed that 44.9% (2355/5242) of participants did not engage in physical exercise in this study. Only older participants (40 to 69 years old) and those with an average level of education (high school/technical secondary school) showed a significant association with exercising for mood regulation. Few people met the index that is good for mental health (16.64% [872/5242] met index 1, and 2.84% (149/5242) met index 2), and higher education showed a significant association with a reduction in the mental health burden and the prevention of depression. CONCLUSION: This study found that motivating people to be more active and educating them on the potential mental health benefits of exercise could help them to exercise more.