There’s a natural way to shake off depression

Could Big Pharma’s cash cow — anti-depressant drugs — finally have some real competition?

Science has proven that people can make their own antidepressant “drug.”

No, not in your kitchen, but right in your own body.

And it doesn’t come with all the side effects that the pharmaceutical varieties do. But there is a catch…it involves something we all know we need more of.

Exercise.

Researchers in Sweden discovered how exactly exercise protects us against the risk of depression.

The key is a particular type of enzyme your muscles make when you workout.

To figure out the specifics, the researchers had to start from the head and work backward.

It turns out that the “workout” enzyme — the one our body makes when we exercise — is a potent “antidote” to a damaging stress chemical that can cause depression.

The theory worked with both mice and people.

And it worked so well, that they concluded not only does exercise “reduce the risk of getting depression,” but helps even those already suffering from it.

Granted, if you’re depressed, the idea of getting up and going for a run isn’t as easy — and may not be as immediate — as taking a pill.

But now we know how this effective, safe — and cheap — way to overcome depression is so much more than just a temporary “runner’s high.”

Sources:
“How exercise may protect against depression” Gretchen Reynolds, October 1, 2014, The New York Times, well.blogs.nytimes.com