Beschreibung:
<p>A low level of physical activity has been associated with depression, and increased physical activity has been found to have a positive effect on mood. However, the association between maximal oxygen uptake (<tex-math>$\text{VO}_{2\text{max}}$</tex-math>) and mood has been poorly studied. In this study<tex-math>$\text{VO}_{2\text{max}}$</tex-math>(ml/kg per min) was measured in a sample of 1,519 men aged 46-61 years during a cycle ergometer test by using respiratory gas exchange. Men with a history of psychiatric disorder or serious physical illness were excluded. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the 18-item Human Population Laboratory Depression Scale (HPL). Those who scored 5 or more in the HPL were considered to have elevated depressive symptoms. The participants were classified into quartiles according to the<tex-math>$\text{VO}_{2\text{max}}$</tex-math>. Those in the lowest quartile had a more than 3-fold (OR: 3.42; 95% CI: 1.65-7.09; p &lt; 0.001) higher risk of having elevated depressive symptoms compared with those in the highest quartile, even after adjusting for several confounders (OR: 3.38; 95% CI: 1.60-7.14; p &lt; 0.001). In conclusion, low<tex-math>$\text{VO}_{2\text{max}}$</tex-math>is associated with having elevated depressive symptoms in middle-aged men.</p>