Children's sports: an hour of physical activity a day improves cognitive abilities

In preadolescents, moderate or intense sports activity performed consistently has a beneficial effect on brain health and improves cognitive development. From the age of 7-9 years, just one hour a day of sports is enough to promote, not only better physical fitness, but also greater cognitive abilities while also enhancing school performance.

This is shown by a study, named FITKids, carried out by researchers from several American universities in collaboration with that of Tokorozawa (Japan), and published in the journal Pediatrics in recent months.

Movement: important in adults and 'childhood

Physical inactivity is a serious threat to global public health. Despite evidence that such inactivity adversely affects the health of the adult population, this condition remains understudied in children. Childhood is characterized by major changes in brain structure and cognitive activities. An active lifestyle in preadolescence may have protective effects on brain health later in life, as with physical health. The specific effects of sports on key cognitive processes and their neural basis remain unknown.

One hour of sports a day to improve the brain

During the study, 221 American children, aged 7 to 9 years, followed a daily program of at least one hour (up to 2 hours) of physical activity for 9 months. In contrast, a parallel group of peers representing the control did not play any sports. During the indicated period, changes in physical fitness, electrical activity of the brain, certain behavioral characteristics, and, through specific tests, cognitive abilities were assessed of each kid. Already after the first week, improvements in the group engaged in 'regular physical activity were revealed, compared with the control group, which became increasingly significant over time. In particular, sports activity was associated with an increase in the ability to carry out flexible behaviors that take into account external stimuli, a fact that is especially important in school performance. The best performance was seen in kids who exercised for more than an hour a day.

More sports more cognitive flexibility

According to the researchers who designed the study, the findings provide evidence for the beneficial effects of sports, and indicate that young people should have more daily opportunities to engage in physical activity, such as during school hours. These would be fairly simple interventions to organize, as the research authors pointed out, but they could have a significant health impact on the population.

Source: Hillman CH, Pontifex MB, Castelli DM, Khan NA, Raine LB, Scudder MR, Drollette ES, Moore RD, Wu CT, Kamijo K. Effects of the FITKids Randomized Controlled Trial on Executive Control and Brain Function. Pediatrics. 2014 Oct;134(4):e1063-71.