14°c Partly cloudy
13°c Rain
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Vigorous exercise best for kids' hearts: study
ENGAGING in less than 10 minutes of vigorous exercise as part of daily physical activity appears to provide increased heart-protective health benefits in children and teens, a Canadian study suggests.
Bouts of high-intensity physical activity such as running, swimming or playing soccer are superior to longer periods of light and moderate exercise in reducing the risk factors for future cardiovascular disease.
The findings were published online Monday by the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. In the study of 605 Alberta schoolchildren, ages nine to 17, researchers found seven minutes a day of intense physical activity was associated with significant reductions in body weight and blood pressure levels as well as increased fitness.
When it came to waist circumference, participants who did the highest amount of vigorous exercise each day pared their midsections by seven centimetres on average. Overweight subjects in that group reduced their waistlines five centimetres.
"That is a huge difference," said principal researcher Jonathan McGavock, an exercise physiologist at the Manitoba Institute of Child Health.
"If we look at physical activity as the magic bullet or drug that is going to have health benefits, such as reducing the risk of overweight or reducing the risk of high blood pressure, a higher intensity is like taking a higher dose of that drug," he said Monday from Winnipeg.
"It says that the more intense the exercise is, the less likely (youth) are to be overweight or to have high blood pressure, compared to (those doing) lower-intensity exercise."
The cross-sectional study included 248 boys and 357 girls, about a quarter of whom were overweight or obese. Canada's physical activity guidelines recommend that children ages five to 17 need 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise daily.
-- The Canadian Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition September 11, 2012 A5
More Local
- Back to Top
- Return to Local
More Local
(1 of 50 articles for this week)
Fire damages St. Vital home
05/19/2013 11:13 AM 0A home in St. Vital sustained $40,000 in damage after a fire Sunday.
Five fire units responded to a basement fire ...
Poll
Most Popular Local
- Police identify slaying victims
- North End proud
- Fishing for fashion
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Take me off your guest list, Harper
- Fire damages St. Vital home
- Actor works to disable bullying
- The end of the credit card?
- Katz bogeys again
- Leaving a gang isn't easy — Sidney Letandre, now a paraplegic, knows it all too well
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Co-worker 'sick' today? Maybe it's the $17M flu
- '2 minutes after I read the winning numbers, I retired': Winnipeg lotto winner
- Sex charges for ex-club boss
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- 'Responsible Winnipeg' ads appear on sign run by mayor-owned Goldeyes' baseball park
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Restaurant Dubrovnik demolished
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- A child-custody catastrophe
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Co-worker 'sick' today? Maybe it's the $17M flu
- '2 minutes after I read the winning numbers, I retired': Winnipeg lotto winner
- Parents, community relieved and elated as missing boy found safe
- No threat from bag found at Winnipeg Square
- Man missing since 2009 found safe
- Earls on Main going, but new one coming
- Fishing for fashion
- North End proud
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Take me off your guest list, Harper
- Police identify slaying victims
- Actor works to disable bullying
- Katz bogeys again
- King of Veggies rules these parts
- Who says house calls are a thing of the past?
- Don't run again, Sam: survey
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Province introduces changes to rules governing landlords, renters
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- Ochre Beach residents are 'thankful everybody got out'
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Fishing for fashion
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Sex charges for ex-club boss
- Giving your money, and expertise, to charity
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- Mental-health patients get own ER
- A child-custody catastrophe
- Black market in moose thrives
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Steen invests $1M in family entertainment centre
- Earls on Main going, but new one coming
- Province introduces changes to rules governing landlords, renters
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- Boost same-sex curricula: union
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.