Sports improve concentration, quality of life in primary school students: Study

Germany, April 6: Sports can boost concentration and result in a better quality of life among primary school students, according to a recent study. The study's findings were published in the 'Journal of Clinical Medicine' journal. The research involved 3285 girls and 3248 boys from Bavaria's Berchtesgadener Land district and the key criteria were physical strength and endurance, the ability to concentrate and health-related quality of life, as determined by the scientists according to internationally standardized test procedures. The results of the study show that the higher the level of children's physical fitness, the better they can concentrate and the higher their health-related quality of life. Further, the study shows that the boys did better on the fitness tests and girls performed better in terms of concentration and quality of life values. Also Read | World Health Day 2022: Ministry of Ayush starts countdown for International Yoga Day Meanwhile, overweight and obese children had majorly poorer results in all tests for physical fitness than underweight children and children with normal body weight. Obese children also had poorer values for health-related quality of life, on the whole, physical well-being, self-esteem and well-being in friendships and at school. "Primary school pupils with good physical fitness and a good ability to concentrate are more likely to make it to secondary grammar schools," says Prof Renate Oberhofer-Fritz, holder of the TUM Chair of Preventive Pediatrics and Dean of the TUM Department of Sport and Health Sciences. "This means it's all the more important to encourage motor development in children at an early stage since this can also have a positive impact on the development of mental fitness," he added. "Collaboration among parents, schools, communities and athletic clubs is very important when it comes to creating a comprehensive and appropriate range of possibilities," Prof. Oberhofer-Fritz concluded. Dr Thorsten Schulz, head of the study team at TUM also stated that "Based on the results of the study since 2019 the Berchtesgadener Land District Administration Office has been giving all first-grade pupils in the region a voucher for a one-year membership in a sports club. This is a great example of how different stakeholders can work together and help motivate children to be more athletically active." Also Read | JEE Main 2022 postponed for both sessions; check new dates -PTC News