A single, half-hour session of moderate exercise is enough to confer an immediate mood-boosting effect, and now scientists have figured out why.

In mice – and likely humans – that boost comes from the release of a hormone called adiponectin, which travels into the brain and sparks activity in a region associated with emotional regulation . The result is a lift in mood that could hang around for hours, although the duration has yet to be measured in humans.

There are some pretty incredible implications here. For people who can exercise , even one workout could offer immediate relief for symptoms of anxiety or depression .

The same mechanism could inspire a class of new, fast-acting antidepressant drugs that take effect much more quickly than traditional treatments such as SSRIs

See Full Page