Fahd Peerzada, Missionary, Guyana
The prevalence of depression is increasing at an alarming rate, with 280 million people around the world suffering from depression according to the World Health Organisation in 2023. An estimated 16.2 million adults in the United States (6.7 percent of all adults in the country) have experienced a major depressive episode in that year, and it is estimated that 5-10% of the US adult population will experience depression at some point in their lifetime. In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic significantly increased the rate of depression, according to Time magazine, amongst other sources.
The World Health Organisation reports that worldwide, around seven hundred thousand people die due to suicide each year.
It is worth asking questions like, is it wealth that improves our quality of life? Why is depression prevalent in higher socio-economic sections of society as much as the low-income homes? Why is it that societies that follow organised religion are more content, regardless of being less economically developed, compared to those that discard religion?
A research based solution
As Muslims, we confidently believe that the teachings of Islam are a guiding light for troubled individuals going through illnesses such as depression that can be avoided or even cured by following the Islamic lifestyle. Many researchers have studied lifestyle choices that can act as a remedy for depression, many of which were taught by the religion of Islam fourteen hundred years ago, with one of them being the importance of living a healthy lifestyle.
Exercise helps prevent a number of health problems as well as improve many diseases, e.g. high blood pressure, diabetes and arthritis. Research has shown that exercise can also improve mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety.
The effect of physical exercise on depression and other mood symptoms is understood to be mediated by the following:
- Release of certain chemicals like the endorphins that make a person feel good, as well as that can enhance one’s sense of well-being.
- Taking your mind off worries so you can get away from the cycle of negative thoughts that feed depression and anxiety.
- Exercising outdoors takes one outside the confines of their home, breaking the cycle of isolation that is usually a consequence of depression.
- Exercise helps improve sleep, while sleep impairment is a common symptom of depression.
- Gaining self-confidence as one’s physical health improves.
- Improved social interaction. Exercise and physical activity may give one the chance to meet or socialise with new people and feel a sense of community and support.
Depression or anxiety symptoms can be significantly improved by engaging in exercise three days a week for 30 minutes. The mental health benefits of exercise may persist only if the activity is carried on long-term, hence it is important to start with an activity one enjoys.
A study has proven that just 30 minutes of treadmill walking for 10 consecutive days was sufficient to produce a clinically relevant and statistically significant reduction in depression on the “Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression”. The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD), also called the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), abbreviated HAM-D, is a multiple-item questionnaire used to indicate depression, and as a guide to evaluate recovery.
A study by Martinsen and other researchers assessed 90 depressed inpatients who were randomly assigned to aerobic or non-aerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise included jogging or brisk walking, and non-aerobic exercise included strength training, relaxation, coordination, and flexibility training. The programme required patients to spend one hour, three times a week, for a period of eight weeks. Both groups experienced a significant reduction in depression score, but there were no significant differences between the groups with respect to the magnitude of change in depression score.
In another study, the benefits of running have been compared with cognitive therapy alone and a combination of running and cognitive therapy. Participants in this study were randomly assigned to running only, running and therapy, or cognitive therapy only. The treatment lasted for a total of 10 weeks. The running group met 3 times per week and exercised for 20 minutes per session. Those in the therapy-only group met with a therapist for a duration of 60 minutes once a week. Those in the combination group received 10 individual sessions with a therapist and ran three times per week. All three groups exhibited a noteworthy decrease in depression, and at the end of a 4-month follow-up, the favourable outcomes remained consistent, with no notable distinctions between them, thus providing evidence that therapy and exercise are both similarly beneficial in helping with depression.
An Islamic stance
The Holy Prophetsa said: “A strong believer is better and is more lovable to Allah than a weak believer.”(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2664). He was talking in terms of faith and character, but also indicated that physical strength, health and fitness were also desirable, that God has given us the ways and means of attaining such strength and that Islam’s approach to life provides us the ability to remain strong.
Islam teaches us that believers must take care of their spiritual, emotional and physical health. Our body, the most complex of natural creations, is given to us by God as a trust. They should not be abused or neglected but maintained in good order.
As the Holy Quran states:
وَلَا تُلْقُوا بِأَيْدِيكُمْ إِلَى التَّهْلُكَةِ
“[…] and cast not yourselves into ruin with your own hands […]” (Surah al-Baqarah, Ch.2: V.196)
Islam emphasises a balanced and moderate diet alongside physical exercise.
كُلُوا وَاشْرَبُوا وَلَا تُسْرِفُوا ۚ إِنَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُسْرِفِينَ
“[…] eat and drink but exceed not the bounds; surely, He does not love those who exceed the bounds.” (Surah al-A’raf, Ch.7: V.32)
Our muscles, bones, lungs, liver and brain are made from the raw product we feed ourselves. If we provide the factory with junk raw products, the factory will not produce healthy bones and strong muscles.
A criterion for Muslims has been laid out in the Holy Quran as to what Muslims should and should not eat. For example, a Muslim should refrain from eating such animals that have been gored to death, killed by a fall or those animals which have not been properly slaughtered. The blood and meat of the dead become full of germs and other harmful elements. Pork meat is high in cholesterol and salt and may develop certain types of worms. Alcohol and other intoxicants cloud our mental activity, our inhibition and interfere with our normal capacity of judging good and bad. By following the Islamic guidance about a healthy diet, one can promote good health and avoid certain ailments.
Significance of health
Why does Islam require one to be healthy? Not only is it so that one can fulfil the rights of God by being able to pray to Him regularly, but also fulfil the rights one owes to fellow human beings as well as to oneself. Being active has great benefits not only for the physical energy requirements of all these essential responsibilities, but also for the mental requirements.
Being active also helps us fulfil the obligations of Islam. Three of the five pillars of Islam require that Muslims be of sound health and fitness. The daily performance of five prayers can be considered a form of exercise. Its prescribed movements involve all the muscles and joints of the body, while also requiring the ability to concentrate on the meditational prayers and supplications, thus relieving one from mental stress. Good health is also necessary to fast in the month of Ramadan and in the performance of Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) which requires many days of strenuous physical effort.
There are many examples from the life of the Holy Prophetsa that exhibit the importance of being physically active and healthy. In a hadith, it is narrated that Hazrat Aishara stated, “I had a race with him (the Prophet) and I outstripped him on my feet. When I became fleshy, (again) I had a race with him (the Prophet) and he outstripped me.” (Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 2578)
In another hadith, the Holy Prophetsa also allowed physical activities in the mosque and acted as a barrier for his wife Aishara when she was watching the Abyssinians practice sports. (Sahih Muslim, Hadith 892)
It is clear that Islam emphasises keeping an active lifestyle which has benefits at all levels, physically, mentally and psychologically, as well as spiritually.