Topline
Topline: Children’s physical activity worldwide dropped by 20% over the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a JAMA Pediatrics study released Monday – a “developmental turning point,” researchers say, and a finding that risks lingering beyond a pandemic marked by school closures and lockdowns.
A new study released Monday found that between Jan. 1, 2020 and Jan. 1, 2022, children’s physical … [+]
Key Facts
Higher intensity activities fell 32% – according to the findings from 22 international peer-reviewed studies on 14,000 children between Jan. 1 2020 and Jan. 1, 2022 – corresponding to a 17-minute reduction in moderate to vigorous daily physical activity.
A 17-minute decline in physical time also represents a one-third reduction in recommended physical activity for young children and school children, to promote good physical health and psychosocial functioning, the study found.
The study warns the pandemic could also mark a “developmental turning point” in not only physical activity, but a “perfect storm of habit discontinuity” that could have wide-ranging effects on physical and mental health.
Not surprisingly, children with consistent access to outdoor spaces were twice as likely to meet physical activity guidelines, while children who lived in cooler areas faced an even more significant reduction in physical activity (37%) when pandemic restrictions were compounded by cold weather.
There is an “urgent need” for public health initiatives to revive young people’s interest in, and support their demand for, physical activity during and beyond the Covid-19 pandemic, the study stated.
While it is accepted that imposing restrictions was critical to halting the community transmission of Covid-19, these restrictions may have had the unintended consequence of negatively affecting physical and, likely by extension, mental health, the study found.
Key Background
Recent studies have also found that pandemic restrictions made students more likely to report regular mental health struggles and suffer academic disadvantages, compared to pre-pandemic numbers. An April report from the National Library of Medicine found that U.S. high school students who played a fall sport reported fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression and a higher quality of life compared to students at schools where sports were canceled. In December, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona released a statement, instructing “schools across the country” to do “everything possible to keep students safe and ensure that they are able to access high-quality, in-person instruction safely in their schools.” Last July, he told CNN, “Kids can’t suffer anymore.”
Big Number
1.5 billion. That’s how many children faced school closures around the world, according to the study. Many of them relied on digital media for remote learning, while extracurricular activities, like athletics, were shuttered.
Further Reading
Nearly 1 In 3 Children With Covid Have Experienced Long-Lasting Symptoms, Study Finds (Forbes)
The Next Wave Of State Innovation: Reimagining Learning In Response To Covid-19 (Forbes)
Mental Illness Risk Soars After Covid Infection, Study Finds — Even With Milder Cases (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2022/07/11/children-are-doing-20-less-physical-activity-amid-the-pandemic-study-finds/