Associations between depressive symptoms and frequency, intensity, duration, and style of walking in survivors of the Great East Japan Earthquake

Background: In post-disaster communities, an association between decreased walking activity and depressive symptoms has been reported. This study aimed to identify the associations between the frequency, intensity, time, and type (or style) (FITT) of walking and depressive symptoms. Method: The 2018 survey of a cohort study was used to examine 924 individuals aged 20 years or older who were severely affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake. Participants were asked whether they walked intending to improve their health (health-conscious walkers: N = 335) and were cautious about their walking parameters. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the association between paying attention to FITT elements and depressive symptoms. Results: In health-conscious walkers, the multivariate model showed that female (odds ratio [OR], 2.45; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.24–4.84) and paying attention to posture during walking (OR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.21–0.81) were significantly associated with depressive symptoms (CES-D ≥ 16). In non-health-conscious walkers, evaluating multiple variables, including walking duration, showed that only a walking duration of less than 30 min per day (OR, 2.06; 95% CI, 1.19–3.56) was associated with depressive symptoms. Conclusions: The current study indicated that paying attention to posture during walking had a significant negative association with depressive symptoms, suggesting that paying attention to posture while walking may be beneficial for mental health well-being. These findings may help improve the mental health of communities affected by a disaster through an intervention to promote regular walking.