Physical Activity and Academic Attainment in Adolescents

The British Journal of Sports Medicine published research on physical activity using accelerometers on 4755 participants (45% male) who were 11 years old.  The data was then linked with nationally administered school tests in the United Kingdom in English, Math and Science at ages 11, 13 and 16.
The results indicated the following:

• percentage of time in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) predicted increased performance in English assessments for both males and females
• at age 16, percentage of time in MVPA predicted increased performance on math scores for males and females
• the percentage of time in MVPA predicted increased performance on science assessments for females at ages 11 and 16.

The researchers concluded that their findings suggest a long-term positive impact of MVPA on academic attainment in adolescence.

Reference: Associations between objectively measured physical activity and academic attainment in adolescents from a UK cohort J N Booth, S D Leary, C Joinson, A R Ness, P D Tomporowski, J M Boyle, J J Reilly Br J Sports Med bjsports-2013-092334Published Online First: 22 October 2013 doi:10.1136/bjsports-2013-092334