Artikel
Benefit of regular Exercise on Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Motor Development in early childhood
Einfluß sportlicher Aktivität auf Risikofaktoren und Motorik im frühesten Kindesalter
Suche in Medline nach
Autoren
Veröffentlicht: | 10. August 2005 |
---|
Gliederung
Text
Introduction: Even in children a poor motor development and cardiovascular risk profile can be observed in industrialized countries. Therefore 3year old children were included in a 2-year controlled study to assess the efficacy of an exercise program on body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), and motor skills.
Methods: A total of 160 children out of 265 in 17 nursery schools participated in a regular exercise program (3x/week). 105 comparable subjects served as controls. BMI, BP and HR were evaluated by standardized procedures. Standardized motor testing included jumping, running, balance and coordination skills.
Results: In the beginning both groups were comparable in allmeasurements. After one year of intervention, no difference could be observed in BMI between interventions (INT) and controls (CON). In contrast, there was already a tendency of lower BP in INT. Furthermore, INT came off significantly better in all motor tests. After two years body-composition differed but statistically not significant. Furthermore, there were no significant differences in HR and in systolic BP at rest in both groups. In contrast, diastolic BP was lower in INT when compared with CON (65.7±6.9 vs. 68.1±7.6 mmHg; p=0.029), this was also true for BP during exercise testing (25 watts for 2 minutes). Furthermore, both groups improved in all motor tests, but significantly in Int when compared with CON. INT came of better in the coordination-test (27.3 vs. 18.4 points; p<0.001), as well as in balance (195 vs. 139cm; p<0.001), jumping (103.9 vs. 83.7cm; p<0.001) and 6m- running (2.2 vs. 2.62seconds; p<0.001), respectively.
Conclusion: The study provides a beneficial effect on motor development and cardiovascular risk factors attributable to regular exercise even in early childhood. Since analyses demonstrate increasing cardiovascular risk beginning in early childhood, preventive strategies should be implemented as early as possible against future morbidity .