Physical fitness is associated with academic performance in young people, according to a report presented at the American Heart Association's 2010 Conference on Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism.
"As children's health continues to be a concern — especially when it comes to obesity — some have suggested that children's physical fitness is associated with their academic performance," said Lesley A. Cottrell, Ph.D., study presenting author and associate professor of pediatrics at West Virginia University in Morgantown, W.Va. "The research, however, had not developed enough to define the nature of that relationship."
To study the association between children's physical fitness and academic performance, Cottrell and colleagues analyzed the body mass index percentiles, fitness levels and standardized academic test scores of 725 fifth grade students in Wood County, W.Va. The researchers focused more on the children's fitness level than their weight. They then compared that data to students' fitness and academic performance two years later, in the seventh grade.
They separated the participants into four groups of students who were:
- in high physical fitness levels in fifth grade and remained so in seventh grade;
- fit in fifth grade but had lost their fitness by seventh grade;
- not fit in fifth grade but were physically fit by seventh grade;
- not physically fit at the beginning of the study, in fifth grade, nor at the end of the study, in seventh grade.
Children who had the best average scores in standardized tests in reading, math, science and social studies were fit at the start and end of the study, researchers found. The next best group, academically, in all four subjects, was made up of children who were not fit in fifth grade but had become fit by seventh grade. The children who had lost their fitness levels between fifth and seventh grades were third in academic performance. Children who were not physically fit in either the fifth or seventh grades had the lowest academic performance.
"The take-home message from this study is that we want our kids to be fit as long as possible and it will show in their academic performance," Cottrell said. "But if we can intervene on those children who are not necessarily fit and get them to physically fit levels, we may also see their academic performance increase."
Youth who are regularly active also have a better chance of a healthy adulthood. The American Heart Association recommends that children and adolescents should do 60 minutes or more of physical activity daily and they participate in physical activities that are appropriate for their age and enjoyable.
The study suggests that focusing more on physical fitness and physical education in school would result in healthier, happier and smarter children, Cottrell said.
Co-authors are: Richard Wittberg, Ph.D., and Karen Northrup, M.S.N. Author disclosures are on the abstract.
Contact information: Dr. Cottrell can be reached at (304) 293-1149 and lcottrell@hsc.wvu.edu. (Please do not publish contact information.) (Note: Actual presentation time is 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET, Tuesday, March 2, 2010.)
Click here to download audio clips offering perspective on this research from American Heart Association spokesperson, Stephen Daniels, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman, Dept. of Pediatrics at Univ. of Colorado, Denver; Pediatrician-in-Chief & L. Joseph Butterfield Chair, The Children's Hospital.
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FOR RELEASE AT: 3 p.m. PT/ 6 p.m. ET, Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Abstract P95
Organized physical activity associated with lower body fat in adolescent girls
Organized physical activity was associated with healthier body fat levels in girls throughout adolescence, in a study reported at the American Heart Association's 2010 Conference on Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism.
In the study of nearly 2,400 black and white girls who were followed for 10 years, body fat increased in all groups over time; however, white girls who participated in the equivalent of at least one hour of moderate activity weekly had lower body fat (10-year average 20 percent) than white non-participants (10-year average 24.7 percent).
More involvement was necessary to note the difference among black girls. Black girls who participated in at least 2.5 hours of moderate activity weekly had significantly lower body fat (at a 10-year average of 25.9 percent) than black non-participants (27 percent).
Girls who never reported any organized physical activity, from the time they were ages 9 to when they were 15, had an average body fat of 35.4 percent at ages 18 to 19. This was significantly higher than the average of 31.7 percent for girls who consistently reported some organized physical activity from ages 9 to 15. The study suggests that organized physical activity may be a valuable intervention approach to help girls maintain healthy body composition, researchers said.
Contact information: Jennie Phillips, Ph.D., University of Maryland College Park; (301) 405-3056; jenniewald@yahoo.com. (Please do not publish contact information.) Author disclosures are on the abstract.
(Note: Actual presentation time is 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET, Tuesday, March 2, 2010.)
Click here to download audio clips offering perspective on this research from American Heart Association spokesperson, Stephen Daniels, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman, Dept. of Pediatrics at Univ. of Colorado, Denver; Pediatrician-in-Chief & L. Joseph Butterfield Chair, The Children's Hospital. Additional resources: To learn more about the American Heart Association's advocacy efforts to strengthen physical education programs in schools, visit fitkidsact.org.
Statements and conclusions of study authors that are presented at American Heart Association scientific meetings are solely those of the study authors and do not necessarily reflect association policy or position. The association makes no representation or warranty as to their accuracy or reliability. The association receives funding primarily from individuals; foundations and corporations (including pharmaceutical, device manufacturers and other companies) also make donations and fund specific association programs and events. The association has strict policies to prevent these relationships from influencing science content. Revenues from pharmaceutical and device corporations are available at www.americanheart.org/corporatefunding.