More school PE would boost children’s brain power on top of physical fitness, says study
PHYSICAL education should be taught every day at school because exercise boosts brain size and improves academic performance, says a study.
Researchers from the University of Granada found that youngsters who were physically active at least three nights a week had more grey matter in areas of the brain linked to reading and verbal communication.
“Our work aims at answering questions such as whether the brain of children with better physical fitness is different from that of children with worse physical fitness and if this affects their academic performance,” said Prof Francisco Ortega of the university’s Sport and Health Institute. “The answer is short and forceful: yes, physical fitness in children is linked in a direct way to important brain structure differences, and such differences are reflected in the children’s academic performance.”
Researchers studied more than 100 overweight and obese children aged between eight and 11, half of whom were asked to take part in cardiovascular exercise for 90 minutes, at least three days of the week. Fitness levels were measured and the volume of their brains recorded at the beginning of the experiment, with measurements taken again at the end.
In every case, as fitness levels rose, so did grey matter in seven parts of the brain. The fitter the youngster became, the greater the change. In comparison, there was no change in the brains of the half who did no extra exercise.
Lead author Dr Irene Esteban-cornejo, said: “Combining exercises that improve the aerobic capacity and the motor ability would be an effective approach to stimulate brain development and academic performance in overweight/obese children. We would appeal both to politicians, who make educational laws that are increasingly more focused on instrumental subjects, and to teachers, who are the final link in the chain and teach physical education day after day.
“School is the only entity that gathers all children in a mandatory way for a period of at least 10 years, and as such, it’s the ideal context for applying such recommendations.”