Heart Rate Recovery Slower in Depressed Patients
(Reuters Health, 6/2/06)

When Dr. Joel W. Hughes of Kent State University, Ohio, and team, compared treadmill test results to scores on the Beck Depression Inventory for 260 cardiac patients, the researchers found that the heart rates of participants who ranked higher for “depression” took longer to return to normal after exercise. These prolonged heart rate recovery times indicate poor autonomic nervous system health, which indicate that subjects may have a higher risk of dying because their bodies cannot quickly adapt to changes in the environment. The scientists speculate that the physical inactivity associated with depression is likely the cause of this diminished capacity for exercise and that treatments that improve physical fitness may benefit depressed cardiac patients.

(American Heart Journal, May 2006)