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New Zealanders are exercising more for their mental health in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A survey by Exercise NZ has found 63 per cent of people say they exercise to help with their mental health, up from just 7 per cent in 2018.
Chief executive Richard Beddie says research shows exercise is as effective as anti-depressants when treating mild to moderate depression.
He says it’s a better alternative than medicating the nation, as it seems to be the default setting for the health system.
Mr Beddie says of concern is that the least physically active groups – Māori, Pacific people, those with disabilities and those in lower social-economic households – are also those most at risk from mental health.
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