Suicide Rate Higher for Adults Who Were Out-of-Shape as Teens: Study

Adults who were in good physical shape at age 18 were less likely to commit suicide than those who were less fit when they were younger, a new study has found. Researchers analyzed data from 1.1 million Swedish men born between 1950 and 1987 and underwent a medical exam for military service. The men were followed into adulthood. "Being in poor physical shape at 18 years of age, measured as the test results on an exercise bike during their medical exam for compulsory military service, can be linked to a risk of suicidal behavior as an adult that is 1.8 times greater," study co-leader Margda Waern, of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, said in a university news release. The increased risk of suicide among men with poor fitness at age 18 was evident even 42 years later, according to the study, which was published online recently in the journal Psychological Medicine. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_138360.html