Fitness improves Thinking Our 3 years old completing their physical program. Our all encompassing physical program works on their locomotor,laterality, fine motor, co-ordination and muscular strength while picking up sophisticated content knowledge at the same time! Children must engage in active play for optimal brain function. Physical activity sharpens the mind. Extra homework may not help children advance in school nearly as much as daily active play. Children who are physically developed exhibit increased cognitive skills including focus and multitasking. A new study shows the brain-body connection is stronger than many people realized. People were made to move. All that physical activity was essential for developing cognitive ability. Study author Charles Hillman, professor of kinesiology at the University of Illinois, emphasizes, “If you study the anthropology of humankind, we were designed to move.” Movement, or lack thereof, can shape the brains of children. Children who were physically developed performed better on cognitive tests. They performed tasks more quickly and accurately than the children in the control group. Brain scans of all the children showed that their brains lit up with activity while performing the tests in contrast with the nonactive kids whose brains remained muted. One important finding was that children did not need to drastically improve fitness levels to see cognitive improvement. The FITKids group only became 6 percent more fit, but experienced much greater increase in their thinking skills. Any movement will sharpen children’s minds. So why do schools and parents insist on hours of homework and other activities that keep children sedentary? When coupled with computer time, TV viewing and video games, children are severely under-stimulated physically. Soccer practice twice a week will not fill the gap. Children need to be actively playing every day. Physical activity boosts overall health, strengthens muscles, including the heart, and reduces obesity. It also improves brain function and thinking skills. The connection between the mind and body needs to be respected. Children whose brains are still developing need to exercise their bodies in order to fully exercise their intellectual potential. Children must engage in active play for optimal brain function.
Posted on: Wed, 01 Oct 2014 23:07:35 +0000
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