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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) An erratum has been published All Versions of this Article: AJPH.2004.053199v1 97/5/887    most recent Submit a response Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (2) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by van Gool, C. H. Articles by van Eijk, J. T.M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by van Gool, C. H. Articles by van Eijk, J. T.M. Related Collections Epidemiology Mental Health

Coen H. van Gool, PhD, Gertrudis I.J.M. Kempen, PhD, Hans Bosma, PhD, Martin P.J. van Boxtel, PhD, Jelle Jolles, PhD and Jacques T.M. van Eijk, PhD

Coen H. van Gool, Gertrudis I.J.M. Kempen, Hans Bosma, and Jacques T.M. van Eijk are with the Department of Health Care Studies, Section Medical Sociology, and the Care and Public Health Research Institute, Universiteit Maastricht, Maastricht, the Netherlands. Martin P.J. van Boxtel and Jelle Jolles are with the Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology and the European Graduate School of Neuroscience, Universiteit Maastricht.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Coen H. van Gool, PhD, Department for Public Health Forecasting, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, PO Box 1, NL-3720 BA Bilthoven, The Netherlands (e-mail: coen_v_gool{at}yahoo.com).

Objectives. We examined whether healthy lifestyles are associated with absence of depressed mood.

Methods. A sample of 1169 adult participants in the Maastricht Aging Study provided baseline and 6-year follow-up data on smoking, alcohol use, physical exercise, body mass index, and mood. We examined associations between lifestyles and depressed mood using longitudinal analyses controlling for baseline depressive symptoms and covariates.

Results. Reports of excessive alcohol use at baseline predicted depressed mood at follow-up (relative risk [RR] = 2.48; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.08, 5.69), and reports of more than 30 minutes of physical exercise per day at baseline were associated with an absence of depressed mood at follow-up (RR=0.52; 95% CI=0.29, 0.92). Reports of being engaged in physical exercise throughout the 6-year follow-up period were also associated with absence of depressed mood (RR=0.56; 95% CI=0.34, 0.93).

Conclusions. In this relatively healthy population sample, certain lifestyles either predicted or protected against depressed mood. Adopting or maintaining healthy lifestyles might be a starting point in preventing or treating depressed mood over time.