Associations of Cognition, Fitness, and Body Composition Among Ethnic Minority Youth
Condition: Obesity; Physical Activity; Cognitive Function 1, Social
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Cognitive Control is crucial for learning and development. This study examined the
      associations between cognitive control and physical fitness and body composition among ethnic
      minority children.
    

Detailed description: 
      Cognitive control, or executive function, refers to a subset of goal-directed processes that
      are involved in perception, memory, attention, behavioral inhibition, verbal reasoning, and
      monitoring of actions. These aspects of cognitive control have been shown to have a direct
      association with academic performance, particularly mathematics and literacy. Many social and
      environmental factors impact the maturation of cognitive control, which can affect the growth
      and behavioral development of children. Physical activity has been shown to improve the
      functioning of the prefrontal cortex, which plays a central role in cognitive functioning.
      Studies have shown that children have better cognitive skills and grades when given a regimen
      of regular physical activity as well as executive control. Aerobic fitness has been
      correlated with faster reaction times as well as more accurate responses and higher
      prefrontal brain activity, which can enhance visuomotor function and proactive inhibition. In
      addition to positive health benefits, physical fitness, a product of the regular physical
      activity, is found to be positively associated with self-esteem, academic performance, and
      cognitive control. Growing evidence suggests that cognitive control may be inversely
      associated with obesity in childhood, adulthood, and in the elderly. The current rate of
      childhood obesity in the U.S. is 31.8% with poor physical fitness levels and increased
      sedentary behaviors as major contributors to the problem. Pediatric obesity may have negative
      implications on cognition, specifically memory, psychomotor speed, reaction time, complex
      attention, executive function and cognitive flexibility with a potential for decreased
      awareness or motivation in girls specifically. Overweight, inactive children, when compared
      to normal weight, active children, have exhibited lower planning and attention scores with
      detrimental effects on inhibitory control and psychosocial outcomes among girls ages nine to
      fifteen While new information continues to support the negative association between obesity
      and cognitive function, the direction of the relationship remains unclear. The extant
      literature also suggests that there is an inverse relationship between socioeconomic status
      and obesity and cognition. A recent study supported the influence of BMI on child executive
      control and BMI's inverse correlation with income, academic readiness, social competence and
      behavioral adjustment. Another study showed that white non-Hispanic and Hispanic children in
      fifth and seventh grades with lower socioeconomic status had a higher rate of obesity with
      inverse relationship most apparent in White non-Hispanic girls and fifth-grade Hispanic boys.
      A negative association has been observed between obesity and pattern construction in boys and
      vocabulary and pattern construction in girls. While there have been cross-sectional and
      randomized clinical trial studies correlating obesity and fitness with cognitive control,
      these studies fail to evaluate diverse racial/ethnic minority populations. Incorporating
      minority groups and gender differences into these associations are very important in
      generalizing findings to diverse demographics. Given the paucity of research examining the
      cumulative impact of obesity and physical fitness on cognition among diverse children, this
      study seeks to address gaps in the literature. This study utilized a comprehensive field test
      battery to evaluate associations among body composition, cardiovascular endurance, muscular
      strength and endurance, and motor skills, on executive control with gender, age, and
      race/ethnicity as mediators. This study is particularly relevant for Hispanic and
      African-American youth who show high rates of overweight and obesity
    

Intervention name(s): Flanker Test and physical fitness test
Intervention type(s): Other
Intervention description(s): Socioeconomic status was determined using a trichotomous index. Inbody was used to assess body composition. To assess physical fitness, certain field tests were implemented using devices to quantify precise actions of physicality. Cognitive control was assessed using a computer-based Flanker Task.
Intervention model: Single Group Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Other
Keywords: cognitive control; physical fitness; minority