Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour in Association with Academic Performance and Cognitive Functions in School-aged Children

Syväoja, Heidi Physical activity and sedentary behaviour in association with academic performance and cognitive functions in school-aged children LIKES – Research Reports on Sport and Health 292 Jyväskylä: LIKES – Research Center for Sport and Health Sciences, 2014. In addition to physical health benefits, physical activity may enhance children’s cognitive and academic performance. Excessive sedentary behaviour, in turn, may have harmful effects on cognitive functions and academic achievement in children and adolescents. The purpose of this study was to determine the associations of physical activity and sedentary behaviour with academic achievement and cognitive functions in school-aged children. In addition, this study aimed to evaluate the internal consistency and one-year stability of the seven tests of computerized neuropsychological test battery used to assess children’s cognitive functions. Two hundred seventy-seven children from five schools in the Jyväskylä school district in Finland (58% of the 475 eligible students; mean age 12.2 years; 56% girls) participated in the study in the spring of 2011. Children’s physical activity and sedentary behaviour were self-reported and measured objectively using accelerometers. Academic achievement scores (teacher-rated grade point averages) were provided by the education services of the city of Jyväskylä. Cognitive functions were evaluated with Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) using two tests for visual memory, three test for executive functions and two tests for attention. During spring 2012, the follow-up measurements were conducted among 74 children. Self-reported physical activity had an inverse curvilinear association with academic achievement, and total screen time had a linear negative association with academic achievement, whereas objectively measured physical activity or sedentary time had no association with academic achievement. High levels of objectively measured physical activity were associated with good performance in attentional reaction time test. High levels of objectively measured sedentary time was associated with good performance in sustained attention test. Objectively measured physical activity or sedentary time had no association with other domains of cognitive functioning. Self-reported physical activity, total screen time or TV viewing had no association with assessed cognitive functions. High self-reported time spent in video game play and computer use was associated with poor performance in the tests measuring visuospatial working memory and shifting and flexibility of attention, respectively. The one-year stability of most cognitive tests was moderate-to-good, but the internal consistency was below an acceptable level for most of the tests, highlighting the need to confirm the psychometric characteristics of the computerized tests among target populations. The results of this study showed that physical activity was positively – and screen time negatively – associated with academic achievement and certain cognitive functions in children. In addition, the positive association with objectively measured sedentary time and sustained attention shows that sedentary time also includes activities that may benefit certain cognitive functions. The results highlight the importance of promoting a physically active lifestyle.