Results Physical activity was associated with numerous health benefits .
The dose-response relations observed in observational studies indicate that the more physical activity , the greater the health benefit .
Results from experimental studies indicate that even modest amounts of physical activity can have health benefits in high-risk youngsters ( e.g. , obese ) .
Vigorous intensity activities may provide even greater benefit .
Aerobic-based activities had the greatest health benefit , other than for bone health , in which case high-impact weight bearing activities were required .
Some of the health benefits can be achieved through an average of 30 minutes per day . [
Level 2 , Grade A ] .
Background The purpose was to : 1 ) perform a systematic review of studies examining the relation between physical activity , fitness , and health in school-aged children and youth , and 2 ) make recommendations based on the findings .
Low cardiorespiratory fitness is a strong predictor for clustering of cardiovascular disease risk factors in children independent of country, age and sex
Background and design Few studies have investigated the association between maximal cardiorespiratory capacity ( fitness ) and the clustered cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) risk in children and youth from culturally diverse countries . This cross-sectional study examined the association between fitness and clustered CVD risk in children and adolescents from three European countries . Methods Participants were 2845 r and omly selected school children aged 9 or 15 years from Portugal ( n = 944 ) , Denmark ( n = 849 ) and Estonia ( n = 1052 ) .  Cardiorespiratory fitness was determined during a maximal test on a cycle ergometer . CVD risk factors selected to assess the degree of clustering were the total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio , plasma triglycerides , insulin resistance ( homeostasis model assessment ) , sum of four skinfolds , and systolic blood pressure . Results There was a strong association between cardiorespiratory fitness and the clustering of CVD risk factors . The odds ratios for clustering in each quartile of fitness , using the quartile with the highest fitness as reference , were 13.0 [ 95 % confidence interval ( CI ) 8.8 - 19.1 ] ; 4.8 ( 95 % CI 3.2 - 7.1 ) and 2.5 ( 95 % CI 1.6 - 3.8 ) , respectively , after adjusting for country , age , sex , socio-economic status , pubertal stage , family history of CVD and diabetes . In stratified analyses by age group , sex and country , similar strong patterns were observed . Conclusion Low cardiorespiratory fitness is strongly associated with the clustering of CVD risk factors in children independent of country , age and sex
Results Physical activity was associated with numerous health benefits .
The dose-response relations observed in observational studies indicate that the more physical activity , the greater the health benefit .
Results from experimental studies indicate that even modest amounts of physical activity can have health benefits in high-risk youngsters ( e.g. , obese ) .
Vigorous intensity activities may provide even greater benefit .
Aerobic-based activities had the greatest health benefit , other than for bone health , in which case high-impact weight bearing activities were required .
Some of the health benefits can be achieved through an average of 30 minutes per day . [
Level 2 , Grade A ] .
Background The purpose was to : 1 ) perform a systematic review of studies examining the relation between physical activity , fitness , and health in school-aged children and youth , and 2 ) make recommendations based on the findings .