Before-School Physical Activity Intervention in Elementary School Children
Condition: Physical Activity
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Children in the U.S. exhibit low levels of physical activity. In addition to the overall
      physical health and fitness benefits with increasing levels of physical activity,
      improvements in academic performance, mental cognition, and behavior may occur. Despite these
      benefits, opportunities for children to participate in physical activity are being reduced,
      particularly in schools.

      The proposed study is a pilot program with approximately 100 children ages 7-11 years
      expected to participate. All study participants will partake in a testing and measures
      session which will include body composition measures, nutrition and physical activity
      questionnaires, and curriculum-based measures. Following the first testing and measures
      session, 50 of the 100 children will participate in a 10-12 week, before-school, moderate to
      vigorous physical activity (MVPA) program. This program will consist of non-competitive, MVPA
      and occur 3 days/week at their school. Subsequent to the physical activity program, all 100
      children will then participate in a follow-up testing and measures session.

      The objective of this proposed pilot study is to determine the feasibility of implementing a
      before-school, physical activity program as well as explore the effect the program may have
      on academic performance and health measures.
    

Detailed description: 
      The current guidelines for physical activity recommend that children should partake in
      regular, moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity for 60 minutes or more each day.
      Unfortunately, children in the U.S. are not meeting these goals. Moreover, physical
      inactivity in these children is considered a significant, contributing factor to childhood
      overweight and obesity. In addition to the importance of physical activity for overall
      physical health and fitness, classroom behavior, academic skills, and attention may also
      improve in children with increasing physical activity. There appears to be a positive
      association between physical activity and academic performance, mental cognition, and
      behavior in children, however, further research to delineate the ideal duration and intensity
      is warranted particularly in elementary school children. As schools in recent years have
      eliminated recess and/or physical education due to growing pressure to increase academic
      scores, creative solutions to engage children in physical activity are desperately needed.
      And with the vast majority of children's time spent in school, this may be the ideal location
      for implementing physical activity interventions.

      The purpose of this pilot study is to determine the feasibility of implementing a
      before-school, physical activity program. Furthermore, the effect the physical activity
      program may have on academic performance, and health measures will also be examined through
      several methods.

      The results of the proposed study may help design future physical activity interventions and
      provide insight to the relationship between physical activity and academic performance.
    

Intervention name(s): Before-School Physical Activity
Intervention type(s): Behavioral
Intervention description(s): 3 days/week of before-school moderate to vigorous physical activity
Intervention model: Single Group Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)