Healthy living
Exercise and fitness
Step up for a salsa
Mental Health lecturers at the University of Derby organised a nine-week study to investigate their theory that the lively Cuban dance can lift people's moods.
Initially, there were 24 participants aged from 21 to 54 attending dance classes, but only eight stuck with the course right to the end. However, all of those who stayed with it registered an improvement in their condition after the event. This was measured using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), a questionnaire-based system used to record and evaluate depression levels. A BDI score of 63 denotes maximum depression, 24 denotes moderate depression and eight would indicate little or no depression at all.
Their average score at the start was 24 on the BDI and this figure fell to just 8.625 by the end of the experiment. The most dramatic change in one participant was from 26 to just one.
Salsa incorporates the steps and rhythms of other dances, such as Mambo and Cha Cha Cha. Matt Birks, Derby's senior lecturer in Mental Health, teamed up with local company Absolute Salsa to lead the experiment.
Matt said: "The results show a significant improvement at each stage of the assessment process for all class members who completed the experiment - a 100 per cent success rate.
"Some of the respondents who were taking antidepressant medication throughout seem to have made the biggest improvements, but the numbers were not high enough to draw specific conclusions from this.
"However, we can conclude physical exercise has been shown to be of benefit to people suffering from depression with salsa no exception."
He explained that it wasn't dancing alone that contributed to the success of the classes.
"Social interaction, shared experience, concentrating on learning a new skill and the confidence this can bring - these probably all played a part," he said.
Information on this site is for interest only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult your own doctor about any specific health concerns.
