Physical activity and mental health in children and adolescents: a review of reviews

By Stuart J. H. Biddle, Mavis Asare. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 2011

2,278 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Objective To synthesise reviews investigating physical activity and depression, anxiety, self-esteem and cognitive functioning in children and adolescents and to assess the association between sedentary behaviour and mental health by performing a brief review. Methods Searches were performed in 2010. Inclusion criteria specified review articles reporting chronic physical activity and at least one mental health outcome that included depression, anxiety/stress, self-esteem and cognitive functioning in children or adolescents. Results Four review articles reported evidence concerning depression, four for anxiety, three for self-esteem and seven for cognitive functioning. Nine primary studies assessed associations between sedentary behaviour and mental health. Physical activity has potentially beneficial effects for reduced depression, but the evidence base is limited. Intervention designs are low in quality, and many reviews include cross-sectional studies. Physical activity interventions have been shown to have a small beneficial effect for reduced anxiety, but the evidence base is limited. Physical activity can lead to improvements in self-esteem, at least in the short term. However, there is a paucity of good quality research. Reviews on physical activity and cognitive functioning have provided evidence that routine physical activity can be associated with improved cognitive performance and academic achievement, but these associations are usually small and inconsistent. Primary studies showed consistent negative associations between mental health and sedentary behaviour. Conclusions Association between physical activity and mental health in young people is evident, but research designs are often weak and effects are small to moderate. Evidence shows small but consistent associations between sedentary screen time and poorer mental health.

Subfields: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, Physiology, Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/96c9e14b9d5caf2523bbb58af91738089cae445f

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In Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

1. Marte Bulie
2. C. Lonsdale
3. Thomas Probst
4. Sanja Budimir
5. Amanda L. Rebar
6. P. Parker
7. E. Howie
8. C. Pieh

In Physiology

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In Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

1. T. Astell‐Burt
2. C. Lonsdale
3. P. Parker
4. R. White
5. D. Lubans
6. Mark Babic
7. R. Pate

Citations in the corpus

• Built environment associates of active school travel in New Zealand children and youth: A systematic meta-analysis using individual participant data (2018, background): “Regular physical activity is associated with improved cognitive (Donnelly et al., 2016), cardiometabolic (Janssen and LeBlanc, 2010) and musculoskeletal health (Tan et al., 2014), as well as reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety (Biddle and Asare, 2011).”
• International clinical practice recommendations on the definition, diagnosis, assessment, intervention, and psychosocial aspects of developmental coordination disorder (2019, background): “Negative self-esteem, for example, has been shown to predict depression and anxiety in adults and in children.(244,245) Table SXVII and Appendix S5 show several core studies in the field that have influenced our understanding of the associations between DCD, psychosocial factors, and related mental ”
• The effect of age, gender, income, work, and physical activity on mental health during coronavirus disease (COVID-19) lockdown in Austria (2020, background): “Association between physical activity and mental health as found in the current study is well known [48].”
• Physical Activity for Cognitive and Mental Health in Youth: A Systematic Review of Mechanisms (2016, neutral): “and (6) ‘blinded intervention facilitators’ (0% of studies).”
• Attitudes toward and motivation for PE. Who collects the benefits of the subject? (2015, background): “PE represents a context in which biological, social, psychological and thus developmental gains associated with movement activities can potentially be promoted to large numbers of children and adolescents (Biddle and Asare 2011).”
• Domain-Specific Physical Activity and Mental Health: A Meta-analysis. (2017, background): “Systematic reviews have shown that physical activity (PA) is associated with greater mental health(6) and a reduced risk of mental ill-health, specifically depression and anxiety.(7,8) However, many of the studies included in these reviews measured total weekly PA.”
• Supporting public health priorities: recommendations for physical education and physical activity promotion in schools. (2015, background): “Benefits not only are limited to the biological, but also include numerous psychosocial advantages such as a reduction in the symptoms of depression, stress, anxiety, and improvements in self-confidence and selfesteem.(5,6) The collective benefits of participation in regular PA”
• Association Between Social Networks and Subjective Well-Being in Adolescents: A Systematic Review (2020, background): “…(Reeves et al., 2013) consuming at least five portions of fruit and vegetables each day (Naska et al., 2000), partaking in physical activity (Biddle & Asare, 2011) and a good night’s sleep (Fuligni & Hardway, 2006) can play a major role in the well-being of children and adults, particularly…”
• The Effects of Physical Activity on Social Interactions: The Case of Trust and Trustworthiness (2019, background): “See, among others, Biddle and Asare (2011); Di Bartolomeo and Papa (2016a); Gothe, Pontifex, Hillman, and McAuley (2013); Kirk, Downar, and Montague (2011); Lee and Park (2010); Penedo and Dahn (2005); Rasciute and Downward (2010); Wankel (1993); and Weatherly et al. (2009).”
• A meta-meta-analysis of the effect of physical activity on depression and anxiety in non-clinical adult populations (2015, background): “Biddle and Asare (2011) conducted a review of reviews investigating physical activity and mental health outcomes in children and adolescents.”
• Physical activity and academic achievement in children: A historical perspective (2012, background): “To help make sense of the accumulating information, Biddle and Asare 21 conducted a review of reviews of PA training interventions and cognitive functioning.”