Childhood Physical Activity Promotes Lifelong Health

Getting Active Early Helps Kids Stay Healthy for Life

It’s no surprise that, at every age, our physical activity level is fundamental to our health.  Research has demonstrated that a low level of physical activity is a risk factor for heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis, multiple types of cancer, anxiety, depression and other conditions.  Some estimate the health burden associated with physical inactivity around the world is nearly equal to the burden associated with cigarette smoking!

In addition to avoiding negative health conditions, it’s been shown that staying physically active can actually improve certain facets of health, such as aerobic capacity, muscle & bone strength, and flexibility.  Additionally, in some cases it can reduce the risk for conditions such as diabetes, high cholesterol, anxiety, and depression.

A person’s growth and development is regulated by a combination of genetics and environmental factors such as nutrition, social interaction and physical activity.

Unfortunately, many young people are not getting enough of the physical activity they need for good health.  According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), “most children fail to engage in vigorous- or moderate-intensity physical activity for the recommended 60 minutes or more each day, with as many as one-third reporting no physical activity in the preceding 5 days.”

There are various reasons why kids may have low levels of physical activity, including technology’s role in entertainment and family life.  The increase of technology for play time has led to a reduction in physical activity among children.  Children now have both higher body weight and higher body mass index (BMI) on average than the previous generation.

Why is this important?  Because, with this, doctors have seen a rise in pediatric obesity, decrease in fitness (e.g., flexibility, muscular strength, cardiorespiratory capacity), and an overall higher risk of disease.

What are the stages of growth and development?

As a child reaches each developmental milestone, their genetics and environmental factors will work together to reach their potential – or fall short of it.  Growth is the natural process of increasing in size and it occurs in three ways: an increase in cell number (hyperplasia), an increase in cell size (hypertrophy), and an increase in intercellular substances (accretion).  The central importance of growth is reflected in the short time periods that make up early life stages.

  • Infancy – from birth to 1 year
  • Early Childhood – 1 year through the preschool years
  • Middle Childhood – elementary school years through approximately 5th-6th grade (roughly age 5 to about 10 or 12 years).
  • Adolescence – commonly defined as 10-18 years of age but varies from individual to individual. At this point is when most male/female differences begin to become more pronounced.

Through these stages, different portions of the body grow at different rates.  Along with this, comes the ability to perform certain tasks.

By contrast, development is the process by which stem cells differentiate and specialize to become various types of cells, tissues, organs, etc.  It also includes the advance and refinement of behaviors.  For example, as the child’s muscles and bones grow, their ability to use their body increases.

From lifting their own head, to sitting up to crawling and walking – all are stages of development.  These actions cannot occur until both the body has grown enough to sustain the motion and they have developed enough to control it.  This same process occurs not only in physical motor skills, but also social, emotional, and cognitive abilities.

How does early physical activity effect activity later in life?

Taking part in healthy activity at each level helps ensure the child will develop the skills that are needed in later stages.  For example, a child must learn to hold their head up before they can learn to sit and must learn to balance themselves sitting up before they can learn to balance on the smaller surface area of their feet.

Physical activity can help children learn basic motor skills and perfect them.  In turn, those skills open the door to more options for physical activity like sport-specific activities. Multiple research findings support the hypothesis that the most physically active preschool-age, elementary school–age, and adolescent youth are also the most skilled.  Plus, as a child improves in their activity, it becomes more enjoyable and rewarding.

As children reach adolescence and begin to develop secondary sex characteristics, additional physical changes occur.  They often have a growth spurt, notable for a sudden increase in height (About 20% of adult height may occur in this phase).  As they reach and go through puberty, boys shoulder width tends to increase more than girls.  In childhood, males tend to have longer trunks and shorter legs compared to girls.  By adulthood, females tend to have shorter legs than males of the same overall height.

While activity does not change a person’s skeletal dimensions, their body proportions can have a significant impact on performance success in various activities.  Long legs are associated with faster running.  Shorter legs and broader hips are associated with balancing tasks.  Long arms and wide shoulders tend to be better at throwing activities.  In fact, some researchers estimate that “approximately 25 percent of engagement in movement-related activities can be attributed to body size and structure.”

More and more, research is demonstrating that people who feel good about their physical skill performance, are more likely to continue being active throughout their life.

On the other hand, those who are not as skilled may be hesitant to participate for fear of “not being good enough”.  This is true for children through adulthood.

Therefore, it is important that children be given the opportunity and resources to develop those basic skills which become the foundation for healthy activity through sports, physical activities, and exercise settings throughout life.

 

Reference:

Committee on Physical Activity and Physical Education in the School Environment; Food and Nutrition Board; Institute of Medicine; Kohl HW III, Cook HD, editors. Educating the Student Body: Taking Physical Activity and Physical Education to School. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2013 Oct 30. 3, Physical Activity and Physical Education: Relationship to Growth, Development, and Health. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK201497/