With school out and summer in full swing, it’s wise to check in on how much exercise your children are getting. Parents may take for granted that their children are getting adequate exercise during the school year through sports and P.E., but it’s important to make sure kids are getting outside and away from their screens during the summer months as well.
The New York Times reports that a new study shows that physical exercise aids brain activity in kids. The study, from researchers at Northeastern University in Boston and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign followed 8-to-10-year-old children in an exercise program for 9 months.
A quote from NYT: “After the trial, the exercising children who were obese at the study’s onset had less visceral fat relative to their starting weight, even if they remained overweight. They also showed significant improvements in their scores on a computerized test that measures how well children pay attention, process information and avoid being impulsive. Notably, a similar effect was observed in children whose weight was normal at the start. Across the board, the more visceral fat a child shed during the nine months of play, the better he or she performed on the test.”
The Body for the Ages philosophy seeks to ensure that everyone, adults and children alike, find the tools they need to live to their maximum genetic lifespan.
See the full New York Times article here, and let us know in the comments what you and your children are doing to stay active this summer!