Japanese children's physical performance declined after pandemic outbreak, study says

 

A team of researchers from Nagoya University in central Japan investigated how restrictions on children's activities during the COVID-19 pandemic affected their lifestyles and their ability to perform

physical activities. By comparing data from medical examinations before and after the outbreak of the pandemic, they found that physical functions, including their dynamic balance, worsened in teenagers. They also found that the children had higher levels of body fat and worse lifestyle habits. Rather than a lack of time to exercise, this may have been due to a lack of quality exercise due to activity restrictions.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, in Japan, as in other countries, schools and sports clubs tried to prevent the spread of infection by restricting physical education and limiting outdoor physical activities, club activities, and sports. However, children who How denied opportunities for physical activity with social elements can develop bad habits. During the pandemic, children, like adults, increased their time spent watching television, smartphones, and computers exercised less, and slept less. Such lifestyle changes can wreak havoc on teenage bodies, leading to weight gain and health problems.

 Professor Tadashi Ito and Professor Hidefumi Sugiura from the Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Nagoya University School of Medicine participated as guest researchers. Dr. Yuji Ito and Nobuhiko Ochi, Department of Pediatrics, Nagoya University Hospital, and Dr. Koji Noritake, Mikawa Aoitori Developmental Disability Medical Rehabilitation Center, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, are interested in collecting data from physical examinations before and during the COVID-19 19 pandemic. conducted a survey of Japanese elementary and junior high school children and students aged 9 to 15 years. analyzed. They assessed the children's muscle strength, dynamic balance function, walking speed, body fat percentage, screen time, sleep time, quality of life, and physical activity time.

Researchers found that after the pandemic, children were more likely to lose their balance during exercise, had higher body fat percentages, spent more time watching TV, computers or smartphones, and were getting less sleep. Since there was no change in the amount of time spent in physical activity or the number of meals eaten, Sugiura et al.