A new study from UBC researchers finds that teens, especially girls, have better mental health when they spend more time taking part in extracurricular activities, like sports and art, and less time in front of screens.
Early sustained middle childhood involvement in organized sport seems beneficial for the subsequent behavioral development of girls but no associations were found for boys. Middle childhood participation in structured venues that demand physical skill and effort with a coach or instructor may thus represent a valuable policy strategy to promote this aspect of behavioral development for girls.
A study by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), a centre supported by “la Caixa,” has for the first time demonstrated an association between regular physical activity during childhood and higher lung-function values in adolescent girls.
A majority of Australian children are spending more than the recommended two-hour daily limit for screen time (watching television, on computers and playing electronic games).
It is often hypothesised that neighbourhood green space may help prevent well-known declines in physical activity and increases in sedentary behaviour that occur across childhood. As most studies in this regard are cross-sectional, the purpose of our study was to use longitudinal data to examine whether green space promotes active lifestyles as children grow older.