Research
Higher daily step counts linked to fewer mental health problems in adolescents
In a study of 5,515 adolescents, higher daily step counts were associated with fewer mental health problems a year later, but not better school performance.
A cohort study found that adolescents who took more daily steps had fewer mental health problems a year later. The researchers tracked 5,515 participants in the U.S. Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study. Participants wore Fitbit devices for three weeks at ages 11 to 12, and researchers later assessed their mental health using the Child Behavior Checklist.
According to the study, adolescents averaging fewer than 5,000 steps a day had the most symptoms, while those averaging around 8,000 had fewer and those taking 12,000 or more had the fewest. The highest step counts were also associated with slightly thicker brain tissue in two areas involved in movement and emotion regulation. Researchers found no link between step count and school performance. The study was observational, so it cannot show that walking more directly improves mental health.
