Teenagers need an hour’s sport a day, say US guidelines

RULES requiring regular physical education for young teenagers stem from “good science”, researchers say.

Frequent “physical education” classes not only improve fitness, they also encourage healthy living, a study from Oregon State University, published in the American Journal of Health Promotion, has found.

Researchers looked at more than 400 pupils, aged 12 to 15. They found that more than one in five received no physical education, and only about 27% met federal government physical activity guidelines. Nearly 40% were obese or overweight.

“Perhaps some were not meeting the guidelines because fewer than 35% actually knew what the guidelines were for their age group,” said study co-author Brad Cardinal. He’s a professor in the school of biological and population health sciences. The federal recommendation calls for at least 60 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous physical activity five days a week.

The study found that longterm physical education boosted fitness and taught pupils that regular physical activity was associated with good health.

There was a strong connection between regular physical education and pupils meeting the activity guidelines, the researchers said.

The study said the trend towards more lax mandates for middle-school pupils was detrimental to their development.

Physical activity has been shown to improve academic achievement, and helps pupils develop a lifelong healthy lifestyle, researchers say.

“We have physical activity guidelines for a reason, and they’re based on good science,” Cardinal said.

“With only slightly more than one in four adolescents meeting the guidelines, today’s youth are being short changed in terms of their holistic development,” he said.

New guidelines are expected next year.

“As there is a propensity towards inactivity, such as increased media consumption and screen time, the guidelines may have to be ratcheted up to compensate,” Cardinal said. – New York Times