Everyone remembers those special times playing with friends as a child. These moments provided an opportunity to have fun enjoying our favorite activities with those close to us. What we didn’t realize at the time is that it was also accomplished a number of other important things in our life. Physical exercise through sports and other means enhances both the physical and mental development of children. This physical activity is especially important in developing countries where many children experience barriers to regular activity including crime, pollution, lack of leisure time, insufficient facilities, cultural restrictions on women, and an increasing desire to live sedentary lifestyles.
Insufficient physical activity is one of the leading risk factors for global mortality and is on the rise in many countries, adding to the burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) – mainly cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes – and affecting general health worldwide. People who are insufficiently active have a 20% to 30% increased risk of death compared to people who are sufficiently active. Globally, 81% of adolescents aged 11-17 years were insufficiently physically active in 2010. Adolescent girls were less active than adolescent boys, with 84% vs. 78% not meeting WHO recommendations.
Physical Development
Regular physical activity helps to maintain a healthy body and reduces the risk of disease. Physical activity is any bodily movement produced by the skeletal muscles that uses energy. This includes sports, exercise, and other activities such as playing, walking, household chores, gardening, and dancing Any activity, be it for work, to walk or cycle to and from places, or as part of leisure time, has a health benefit.
Regular physical activity of moderate intensity – such as walking, cycling, or playing sports – has significant benefits for health. At all ages, the benefits of being physically active outweigh the potential harm. By becoming more active throughout the day in relatively simple ways, people can quite easily achieve the recommended activity levels.
The World Health Organization released a report stating regular and adequate physical activity:
- improves muscular and cardiorespiratory fitness;
- improves bone and functional health;
- reduces the risk of hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, various types of cancer (including breast cancer and colon cancer);
- improves mental wellness and reduce depression;
- reduces the risk of falls as well as hip or vertebral fractures;
- controls energy balance; and
- improves weight control.
The WHO recommends the following physical activity for children and adolescents aged 5-17 years old:
- Should do at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous-intensity physical activity daily.
- Physical activity of amounts greater than 60 minutes daily will provide additional health benefits.
- Should include activities that strengthen muscle and bone, at least 3 times per week.
The intensity of different forms of physical activity varies between people. In order to be beneficial for cardiorespiratory health, all activities should be performed in periods of at least 10 minutes duration.
Mental Development
In an article by Novak Djokovic Foundation entitled The Importance of Sports for Children, no other thing in life affords children such opportunity to develop positive character traits and instill important values as sports does. Benefits that may come from playing sports:
- Kids’ character and moral principles are formed through fair play.
- Playing sports enables them to create friendships they otherwise might not have formed.
- Sports bring people together, regardless of their nationality, religion, culture, or skin color.
- Teamwork and benefits of social interaction among children are best seen in sports.
- They view competitions on and off the field as opportunities to learn from their success and failure.
- They learn to respect authority, rules, team colleagues, and opponents.
- Sport is an important learning environment for children. Numerous studies have shown that children who play sports perform better at school.
- Sports experiences help to build positive self-esteem in children.
In addition, participating in sports can be a helpful way of reducing stress and increasing feelings of physical and mental well-being. The point is to keep the body in good health in order to be able to keep our mind strong and clear.
Each LightWaterLife humanitarian aid kit includes a size 5 soccer ball and mini pump. This simple gift can have a massive impact on the physical and mental well-being of children around the world. Click here to see what’s inside a LightWaterLife humanitarian aid kit.
Source: World Health Organization | Novak Djokovic Foundation