The effects of chronic physical activity interventions on executive functions in children aged 3–7 years: A meta-analysis

Li, Longkai; Zhang, Jinming; Cao, Meng; Hu, Wenwen; Zhou, Tang; Huang, Tao; Chen, Peijie; Quan, Minghui

doi:10.1016/j.jsams.2020.03.007

Cited by 43 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…The Stroop, Go/no-go, and Flanker tasks are the most commonly used tools to evaluate the performance (reaction time and/or accuracy) of inhibitory control (Chen et al, 2020). The present review suggests that both acute and chronic exercises are beneficial for inhibitory control, with small magnitudes (Xue et al, 2019;Li et al, 2020). The mechanisms of action of acute and chronic exercises on inhibitory control are unclear, but a possible explanation regarding the effects is attributed to the features of exercises; that is, whether acute or chronic exercises are used can cause an individual to need to complete more complex tasks than everyday multitasking, and this operation mode relies on the non-automatic selection of the process during exercises, which facilitates the speed of reaction of inhibition control (Li et al, 2017).…”

Section: Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 78%

Effects of Acute and Chronic Exercises on Executive Function in Children and Adolescents: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis

Liu

et al. 2020

Front. Psychol.

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Background: Physical exercises can affect executive function both acutely and chronically, with different mechanisms for each moment. Currently, only a few reviews have elaborated on the premise that different types of exercises have different mechanisms for improving executive function. Therefore, the primary purpose of our systematic review was to analyze the effects of acute and chronic exercises on executive function in children and adolescents.Objective: We identified acute and chronic exercise studies and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of executive function in children and adolescents that reported overall effect, heterogeneity, and publication bias of acute and chronic exercises on executive function.Methods: We searched for RCTs of exercise interventions in children and adolescents from databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, The Cochrane Library, CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure), and Wanfang, from January 1 2009 to December 31 2019. We performed methodological quality evaluations on the included literature using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database Scale (PEDro) and graded evidence with a meta-analysis using Stata 12.0 software.Results: In total, 36 RCTs were included (14 acute exercises, 22 chronic exercises); the overall results of the meta-analysis (4,577 students) indicated that acute exercises significantly improved working memory (standardized mean difference (SMD) = −0.72; 95% confidence interval (CI) −0.89 to −0.56; p < 0.001), inhibitory control (SMD = −0.25; 95% CI −0.40 to −0.09; p = 0.002), and cognitive flexibility (SMD = −0.34; 95% CI −0.55 to −0.14; p < 0.005), whereas chronic exercises significantly improved working memory (SMD = −0.54; 95% CI −0.74 to −0.33; p < 0.001), inhibitory control (SMD = −0.30; 95% CI −0.38 to −0.22; p < 0.001), and cognitive flexibility (SMD = −0.34, 95 % CI −0.48 to −0.20, p < 0.001).Conclusion: Acute and chronic exercises can effectively improve the executive function of children and adolescents. The effects on inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility are considered as small effect sizes, while the effects on working memory are considered as moderate effect size. Limited by the quantity and quality of the included studies, the above conclusions need to be verified with more high-quality studies.

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Section: Inhibitory Controlmentioning

confidence: 78%

Effects of Acute and Chronic Exercises on Executive Function in Children and Adolescents: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis

Liu

et al. 2020

Front. Psychol.

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“…983) than acute exercise (g = 0.415) in children and adolescents with ADHD. Meanwhile, three recent reviews validated a small positive effect of chronic exercise programmes on overall EFs of the general population, including children aged 3–7 years (g = 0.35) [ 92 ], preadolescent children aged 6–12 years (g = 0.24) [ 20 ] and children and adolescents aged 6–17 years (d = 0.20) [ 16 ]. Interestingly, the beneficial effects of chronic exercise intervention appear more robust in ADHD than in the general population.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of exercise interventions concerning executive functions of children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Liang

Wong

et al. 2021

Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act

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Background Previous studies found that exercise interventions have positive effects on executive functions of the general population. However, studies seldom target executive functions of children and adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study aimed to synthesise empirical studies regarding the effects of exercise interventions on executive functions of children and adolescents with ADHD. Methods A systematic search of the relevant literature was conducted in March 2020 through six electronic databases: CINAHL Complete, Eric, MEDLINE, PsychINFO, SPORTDiscus with Full Text, and Web of Science. Randomised controlled trials/quasi-experimental designs that applied exercise interventions and assessed executive functions through neurocognitive tasks among children and adolescents with ADHD were included. Altogether, 314 studies were identified, from which 31 full texts were independently assessed by two authors for eligibility. Finally, 21 studies underwent systematic reviews and 15 were selected for meta-analysis. Data extraction procedures and risk of bias analysis were conducted by two independent authors using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale. Results The findings indicated that exercise interventions improved overall executive functions of children and adolescents with ADHD (SMD = 0.611, 95% CI [0.386 to 0.836], p < 0.01). Exercise interventions had a moderate-to-large positive effect on inhibitory control (g = 0.761, 95% CI [0.376 to 1.146], p < 0.01) and cognitive flexibility (g = 0.780, 95% CI [0.331 to 1.228], p < 0.001). Likewise, during the subgroup analysis, intervention intensity and sessions of exercise (acute vs chronic) significantly moderated exercise intervention rather than intervention type. Conclusions Chronic sessions of exercise interventions with moderate intensity should be incorporated as treatment for children with ADHD to promote executive functions.

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“…Almost ten years ago, [ 102 ] reviewed, in detail, the effects of physical activity on executive functions; they found positive relationships between physical activity and executive functions, especially consistent with inhibitory control (deliberate suppression of impulsive responses), although other functions showed occasional or no effects. More recently, on the one hand, positive effects of physical activity on executive functions have been reported in preschool children (age 3–5 years), kindergarten children, children aged 3–7 years, preadolescent pupils (6–12 years), and older adults [ 2 , 103 , 104 , 105 , 106 ]. On the other hand, another work reported no significant effects of physical activity (Daily Mile™) on fluency in math or the executive function in children (mean age = 8.99 ± 0.5) [ 107 ].…”

Section: Learning Stimulation Based On Neuroscientific Findingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mindfulness and Other Simple Neuroscience-Based Proposals to Promote the Learning Performance and Mental Health of Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Seabra

Padrão

Juan³

2021

Brain Sciences

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The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on education. The restrictions imposed have undoubtedly led to impairment of the psychological well-being of both teachers and students, and of the way they experience interpersonal relationships. As reported previously in the literature, adverse effects such as loneliness, anxiety, and stress have resulted in a decrease in the cognitive performance of school and higher education students. Therefore, the objective of this work is to present a general overview of the reported adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic which may potentially influence the learning performance of students. Some neuroscientific findings related to memory and cognition, such as neuroplasticity and long-term potentiation, are also shown. We also discuss the positive effects of the practice of mindfulness, as well as other simple recommendations based on neuroscientific findings such as restful sleep, physical activity, and nutrition, which can act on memory and cognition. Finally, we propose some practical recommendations on how to achieve more effective student learning in the context of the pandemic. The aim of this review is to provide some assistance in this changing and uncertain situation in which we all find ourselves, and we hope that some of the information could serve as a starting point for hypotheses to be tested in educational research and their association with neuroscience.

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The effects of chronic physical activity interventions on executive functions in children aged 3–7 years: A meta-analysis

Cited by 43 publications

References 51 publications

Effects of Acute and Chronic Exercises on Executive Function in Children and Adolescents: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis

Effects of Acute and Chronic Exercises on Executive Function in Children and Adolescents: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis

The impact of exercise interventions concerning executive functions of children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Mindfulness and Other Simple Neuroscience-Based Proposals to Promote the Learning Performance and Mental Health of Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

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