Cochrane Public Health reviews weigh up the evidence on exercise programs for kids & teenagers

It's estimated that as many as 5.3 million deaths worldwide are caused by not getting enough exercise (physical inactivity), and this is a big risk factor leading to most long‐lasting diseases and cancers. This is a growing issue of concern, particularly as excercise patterns in childhood can lead to similar patterns in adulthood.

Programs that encourage children to exercise while at school are thought to be a way to increase activity levels of all children, regardless of other factors such as parent behaviours and social or financial factors of a child’s early lifetime. As such, Cochrane Public Health have been exploring the evidence in this area, and last month published two reviews focused on physical activity for young people, including:

• Interventions in outside-school hours childcare settings for promoting physical activity among schoolchildren aged 4 to 12 years
  

• School-based physical activity programs for promoting physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents aged 6 to 18

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