When Larry Sanders of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks walked away from a $44 million contract in 2015, he knew it was time to face — and get treatment for — his chronic depression. This super athlete found that his depression was making his mind and body less court-ready.

He told reporters: "I'm trying to get to the root of a lot of issues ... Without getting them corrected, I don't think basketball is something I could do."

Well, for the first time research confirms what Sanders felt instinctively: Depression in more than a mental disorder. It raises body-wide levels of oxidative stress, and that affects all systems and organs.

Writing in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, researchers from the University of Granada suggest that this may explain why people who suffer from depression are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease and cancer, and die at an earlier age than those without depression.

Clearly, this discovery changes how depression should be treated.

Talk therapy and antidepressants help reduce symptoms, and according to the research, restore body levels of anti-inflammatory substances such as zinc and uric acid, reducing markers of oxidative stress.

But you need to treat the body, not just the mind. That means adopting an anti-inflammatory lifestyle: At least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise five days a week, plus eliminating inflammation-boosting trans and saturated fats, processed grains, and added sugars and syrups from your diet.

That full-court press may stop depression from benching you.