Sports help improve mental health too

All of us are aware of the benefits that sports have on our physical health. Sports activities are considered one of the best ways to bring good health and fitness to us. But, have we ever wondered about the psychological benefits that sports have on our mental health? No?

According to a study “Exploring the Association Between Sports Participation and Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression in a Sample of Canadian High School Students” conducted in 2021 on 70,000 high school students, sports have a positive effect on those suffering from stress and anxiety.

The study, which was published in the “Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology”, also suggested that students who played some or the other sports showed beneficial effects on depression and were at a lower risk of experiencing it while moving forward in life. Let us read through this article to understand certain mental health benefits associated with sports—

*Reduces stress: When we play any sport, our body releases endorphins—a hormone responsible for relieving stress from our body.

*Improves concentration: When we are involved in any sport, we tend to stay more focused on the very moment and not many other things come to our mind thus boosting our concentration.

*Improves sleep: Sports activities help us with improved sleep because the cortisol levels (the hormone responsible for stress) goes down thus making us feel more relaxed and helping us with deep sleep.

*Inculcates teamwork spirit: Team sporting activities bring about habits of teamwork and enhance the ability to work with someone and not just go around doing things on your own.

*Helps fight addiction: According to a research conducted on Norwegian teenagers, those who played a team sport were less likely to indulge in smoking or using drugs as adults.

*Improves self-image: As and when our stamina, skills, strength and cognitive functioning improve by sports, our self-image and our self-confidence get better boosting.

Unlike the common perception, sports are not only for our physical health but for our mental health as well. In the words of former long-distance runner Lynn Jennings, “Mental will is a muscle that needs exercise just like muscles of the body.”

ACCORDING TO A RESEARCH CONDUCTED ON NORWEGIAN TEENAGERS, THOSE WHO PLAYED A TEAM SPORT WERE LESS LIKELY TO INDULGE IN SMOKING OR USING DRUGS AS ADULTS.