Comparison of the Effect of Aerobic Exercise and Antidepressant Medications on Depression and Sexual Desire of Depressed Middle-Aged Women

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of 8 weeks of aerobic exercise on depression and sexual desire in middle-aged women diagnosed with depression. Materials and Methods: The present study is a quasi-experimental study. Sixty females volunteered to participate in this study and were randomly divided into 4 groups; group A was prescribed with antidepressant drug (n = 15), group B employed aerobic exercises (n = 15), group C combination of drug and aerobic exercise (n = 15) and group D which was the control group (n = 15), respectively. Beck Depression Inventory was used in these 4 groups to assess their level of depression and sexual functioning. For statistical analysis of the data the t test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Bonferroni post hoc test was used. Results: Comparison within groups showed a significant decrease in the pre-test on depression variables of the 3 groups; the drug group (P = 0.006), exercise (P = 0.011) and combination (P = 0.001) and also, regarding the variable libido, significant increase in the pre-test and post-test was observed. Regarding the sexual desire variable, results showed that only the aerobic exercise group had a significant increase in the pre-test and the post-test (P = 0.005). Comparison of the group variables showed a significant difference between the 4 study groups in both variables of depression and sexual desire. Conclusion: Considering the effectiveness of exercise on depression, it is expected that aerobic exercise would be considered as an effective non-pharmacologic treatment with less side effect in reducing depression and increasing sexual desire.