A 16-week school-based intervention improves physical fitness in Slovenian children: a randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a 16-week school-based physical activity (PA) intervention on physical fitness (PF) (speed, hand-eye coordination, flexibility) of 8- to 9-year-olds. Methods: A total of seventy-eight boys and girls (boys: n = 45, aged 8.4 ± 4.9 years; girls: n = 42, aged 8.6 ± 0.5 years) from a school in Slovenia were randomly assigned to either a group with an after-school PA program (EXP) or a control group (CON) that participated exclusively in mandatory physical education (PE). The EXP group engaged in the extracurricular PA program for 60 min twice a week for 16 weeks, concurrent with regular PE classes. The program primarily involved elementary PE games that included elements of athletics (e.g., skipping, push- off running, hopping, crossstepping, and jumping) and gymnastics (e.g., handstand, forward roll, backward roll, hand support jumps, squat jump on a vault box, climbing on horizontal bars, incline benches and ropes, crawling, and jumping rope). Standardized tests appropriate for this age group were used to assess PF, including the sit and reach test (SAR), the 30-meter sprint, and the alternate hand wall toss test at distances of 1.0 and 2.0 m (AHWT 1.0 and 2.0). Results: There was a significant group-time interaction for SAR test (EXP group increase: +1.6 cm, +6.3%; CON group decrease: -0.1 cm, -0.4%; p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.361), and the 30 m sprint (EXP group improvement: -0.4 s, -6.3%; CON group decrease: +0.1 s, +1.6%; p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.193). Similarly, the EXP group improved by +2.1 points (+25.6%) in the 1.0 m wall throw with the alternating hand, while the CON group showed only minimal changes (-0.2 points, -2.4%; p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.545). No significant interaction was found for the 2.0 m toss (EXP and CON group both -0.1 points, -2.6%; p = 0.888, ηp2 = 0.001). Post-hoc analyses with paired t-tests revealed that the EXP group showed significant improvements in SAR test (p < 0.001), 30 m sprint (p < 0.001) and AHWT 1.0 test (p < 0.001), while the CON group showed no significant changes in SAR test (p = 0.533), 30 m sprint (p = 0.150), AHWT 1.0 test (p = 0.186) and AHWT 2.0 test (p = 0.430). Discussion: The results of the study showed that the extracurricular program with only two additional weekly sessions significantly improved the components of PF in 8- to 9-year olds. Significant improvements were observed in the areas of flexibility, speed and coordination, as shown in the SAR test, 30-meter sprint and 1.0-meter handwall toss tests. However, no similar improvements were observed in the 2.0-meter handwall toss, which illustrates the specific areas of impact of the program.

Physical exercise and cognitive training interventions to improve cognition in hemodialysis patients: A systematic review.

Introduction: Patients with chronic kidney disease treated with hemodialysis (HD) have lower cognitive abilities compared to the age-matched healthy population. Recently, physical exercise and cognitive training have been presented as possible interventions to improve cognitive abilities both in the general population and in patients with chronic diseases. To date, there is no general overview of the current knowledge on how these interventions affect cognitive abilities in HD patients and what tests are used to measure these effects. Methods: Three electronic databases were searched for randomized controlled studies of physical exercise or cognitive training interventions that examined effects on cognitive abilities/performance in HD patients. Results: Six articles were included. All included studies used physical exercise as an intervention, with one study also including tablet-based cognitive training. Four studies included an intradialytic approach and two included a home-based intervention. Intervention lasted. A significant intervention effect was observed in three studies compared with the control condition. Conclusion: The present review suggests that physical exercise might improve or at least not worsen cognitive performance in HD patients, whereas the effect of cognitive training has not yet been adequately studied. There is a need for more sensitive and specific cognitive tests to adequately measure the effects of interventions in the HD population.

Twelve-Week Game-Based School Intervention Improves Physical Fitness in 12-14-Year-Old Girls.

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of a twelve-week game-based school intervention on physical fitness in girls aged 12-14 years. Fifty-nine adolescent girls (13.2 ± 0.3 years) were randomly assigned to a group that participated in a game-based after-school program (EXP) or a control group (CON) that participated only in mandatory physical education. The EXP group had the additional program twice a week after school for 40 min/session for 12 weeks alongside with regular physical education classes. The EXP program consisted mainly of small-sided games of football, basketball, handball, and volleyball. The assessment included a physical fitness assessment with standardized tests for this age group: countermovement jump (CMJ), standing long jump, bent arm hang, overhead medicine ball throw, sit-ups for 30 s, and Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Level 1 Test (YYIRT1). There was a significant interaction between group (EXP vs. CON) and time (pre-test vs. post-test) for the standing long jump (p < 0.001), overhead medicine ball throw (p < 0.001), 30 s sit-ups (p = 0.030), bent- arm hang (p < 0.001), and YYIRT1 score (p = 0.004). In addition, a significant main effect was found for time in countermovement jump (p < 0.001). The results of this study indicate that the after-school game-based intervention significantly improves adolescent girls' physical fitness compared to regular physical education. The overall conclusion suggests that as few as two additional sessions per week are sufficient to produce significant changes in physical fitness in adolescent girls.

Exercise-Based Interventions in Middle-Aged and Older Adults after Myocardial Infarction: A Systematic Review.

This study summarized the relevant literature and aimed to determine the effect of exercise-based interventions after myocardial infarction in middle-aged and older adults. Studies were identified and analyzed according to the PRISMA guidelines. The following electronic databases were used: Google Scholar, PubMed, Mendeley, Science Direct, and Scopus. The identified studies had to be longitudinal, be published in English, have taken place between 2010 and 2020, involve participants who had suffered myocardial infarction, and address different types of exercise-based interventions to be included. Of the 592 relevant studies identified, 20 were included in the qualitative analysis. After analyzing the results obtained, it could be concluded that different types of exercise-based interventions or their combination have a positive effect after myocardial infarction in middle-aged and elderly adults. It can also be suggested that the combination of a cycle ergometer and a treadmill may be the most effective exercise-based intervention. An adequate choice of intensity and volume is crucial, with the optimal duration of the experimental program and the type(s) of exercises adapted to participants after myocardial infarction.

Nutrition and Physical Activity Behavior in 11-14-Year-Old Schoolchildren in Serbia.

Regular physical activity and healthy diet have a significant positive impact on children's health. Lack of physical activity increases the risk of various diseases, while obesity has become an alarming health problem worldwide. The aim of this study is to investigate the patterns of physical activity and diet among 11-14-year-old school children in Serbia. The sample included 623 primary school children, of whom 333 were boys (53.45%) and 290 were girls (46.55%). The children were also divided according to their age/grade: fifth grade/11 years (24.40% (n = 152; M = 84, F = 68)), sixth grade/12 years (25.68% (n = 160; M = 91, F = 69)), seventh grade/13 years (26.81% (n = 167; M = 83, F = 84)) and eighth grade/14 years (23.11% (n = 144; M = 75, F = 69)). Children's lifestyle was assessed using two subscales of questionnaires based on the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile model II. The Mann-Whitney U test showed no statistically significant difference between boys and girls in the variables Nutrition (p = 0.81) and Physical Activity (p = 0.91). The Kruskal-Wallis test was applied and showed no statistically significant differences between children of different ages, regardless of gender, in the variable Nutrition (p = 0.63). However, differences were evident in the variable Physical Activity (p < 0.001), with the highest mean scores recorded in 12- and 13-year-old children and the lowest in 14-year-old children. Additionally, no statistically significant differences were found among boys as a function of age in the variables Nutrition (p = 0.55) and Physical Activity (p = 0.15), nor among girls in the variable Nutrition (p = 0.43), but in the variable Physical Activity (p = 0.01). In general, it can be concluded that the older primary school children have relatively satisfactory dietary and physical activity habits, but that these behaviors decrease with age, especially the level of physical activity. There is a need for better and more effective education of children about the benefits and importance of proper nutrition and regular physical activity.