Physical Activity and Mental Development

in Children and Adolescents

What about the children?

Every time there is a discussion on mental health, it seems like there's one group that gets left out sometimes... Yes adults have it hard but so do children!

[original research]
- still searching for other research with some data in it at least ...

This is a paragraph. Use this area to add any information you want to share with users. Just click "Edit Text" or double click here to change the text and make it your own. You can also adjust the paragraph's font, size and color so it fits your website’s theme.

This is a great place to tell users a story about your website and let them know more about what you offer. You may want to share information about your company's background, your team, or the services you provide. Be sure to keep the tone and voice consistent throughout the site so users become familiar with your brand.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND HEALTH RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS

Active Participation in Physical Activity

Kids should be able to have fun and play! The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that children and adolescents (6-17 years old) have about one hour or more of moderate to vigorous-intensity (including age appropriate muscle/bone strengthening exercises) physical activity per day at least 3 days a week [insert citation for - https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/physicalactivity/guidelines_backup.htm#:~:text=Children%20and%20adolescents%20should%20have,least%203%20days%20a%20week.]

Limit Sedentary Activity

*will organize citations later

Nowadays, it seems like the world is at our fingertips with the amount of things we can do with our smartphones. However, it is important to remember the world is also right in front of us and not a screen.

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) recommends that for children ages 2-5, screentime is limited to 1 hour on weekday and 3 hours on weekends. For children 6 years old and beyond, there is no specific hour recommendation on screen time but encourage a healthy lifestyle which include a limit on screen time. (https://www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Facts_for_Families/FFF-Guide/Children-And-Watching-TV-054.aspx)

Time to sleep...Zzz

As much energy kids have, They also need as much sleep if not more. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, it recommended for school-aged children to get between 9-13 hours of sleep each night and for teens, a solid 8-10 hours of sleep.

(https://health.gov/myhealthfinder/healthy-living/mental-health-and-relationships/get-enough-sleep#:~:text=How%20much%20sleep%20do%20I,rested%20when%20you%20wake%20up.)

Multiple studies have shown a promising relationship can be found between meeting all 3 recommendations (active participation in physical activity, sedentary behavior kept to less than 2 hours (based on screen time), and getting enough sleep (about 8-11 hours)) and having positive mental health indicators among children and adolescents

(Sampasa-Kanyinga et al. 2020)