ADHD and exercise

The CNP ADHD and Exercise Research Category consolidates research exploring the interdependent relationship between child and adolescent ADHD and exercise.

To view each original study on the open internet, click “Original.” To view the CNP summary of the study, click “CNP Summary.” While a small portion of the studies in this research category is available below for free, the full set of studies (and their summaries) are available to CNP members through the CNP Library Membership (launching January 15, 2022).

2019

Impact of physical exercise on childrenwith attention deficit hyperactivity disorders: Evidence through a meta-analysis

This 2019 meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the influence of physical exercise on children with ADHD. There have been reports of exercise having many benefits on young ADHD sufferers. A thorough search on several databases produced 14 relevant studies (with a sum total of 574 patients with ADHD). Around half of the subjects (276) were placed in the exercise group, while the other 298 were assigned to the control group. Children with ADHD saw their depression and anxiety significantly improve after doing physical activity. This physical activity group also demonstrated better hyperactive/impulsive symptoms and inattention symptoms after performing exercise, although these effects were not statistically significant. Furthermore, the researchers noticed positive changes in the exercise group’s thought problems, social issues, and aggressive behaviors. To summarize these findings, physical exercise contributes considerably to reducing anxiety and depression, aggressive behaviors, thought and social problems in children suffering from ADHD. These young kids with ADHD are urged to include physical activity in their daily routines. [NPID: exercise, physical activity, ADHD, attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, meta-analysis, anxiety, depression, behavior, social problems]

Original
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CNP Research Summary can be found in the CNP Library Membership

2020

Swimming training improves mental health parameters, cognition and motor coordination in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

In this 2020 study, 33 children aged between 11 and 14 years were randomized to either participate in a swimming program for 8 weeks or not partake in any training at all. A total of eighteen children/adolescents were assigned to the training group, while 15 were untrained. The aim of this study was to uncover the effects of this swimming-learning program on certain mental health outcomes, cognition, and motor coordination. Tests were conducted to determine mental health, cognition, motor coordination, and physical fitness 48 hours before and after the training sessions. The beginner’s swimming program markedly improved the children’s depression levels, stress, cognitive flexibility, and selective attention. There was also significant development in the training group’s lateral coordination of lower limbs, flexibility, and abdominal resistance. This study concludes that the swimming-learning program had a remarkably positive impact on mental health, cognition, and motor coordination in children with ADHD. [NPID: ADHD, attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, swimming, intervention, program, mental health, depression, cognition, motor coordination, stress, special needs, children]

Original

2019

Effects of exercise on cognitive performance in children and adolescents with ADHD: potential mechanisms and evidence-based recommendations

While the worldwide prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has increased dramatically to around 7% of children and adolescents over the past decade, this 2019 study highlights the problems associated with the current conventional treatments such as central nervous stimulants. Christiansen et al. review the current evidence on the effects of exercise on the cognitive functions in children with and without ADHD. Exercise is a safe and low-cost therapy for ADHD and has been suggested to positively affect several aspects of cognitive function in children. The author found that acute aerobic exercise can have a beneficial impact on executive functions in children with ADHD. According to the meta-analysis results, exercise had small positive effects on the population-based control children. Moreover, the data suggested that long-term interventions that incorporated exercises consistently had positive effects on children and adolescents with ADHD. It is difficult to draw conclusions due to the low number of studies investigating the effect of different exercise parameters. But the existing preliminary evidence indicates that exercise can enhance cognitive performance in children with and without ADHD. [NPID: ADHD, attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, exercise, physical activity, children, adolescents, review, cognition, cognitive function]

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CNP Research Summary can be found in the CNP Library Membership

2017

Sweat it out? The effects of physical exercise on cognition and behavior in children and adults with ADHD: a systematic literature review

This 2017 review explores the acute and long-term effects of exercise (cardio and non-cardio) on children primarily since physical exercise has been suggested as a potential therapeutic option. It is very important that safe and effective treatments are discovered since attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most frequently diagnosed developmental disorders in childhood. The researchers searched for relevant papers on physical exercise in patients with ADHD, and its impact on cognitive, behavioral/socio-emotional, and physical/physiological outcomes. Cardio-focused exercise appeared to provide subjects with an acute positive impact on response time, physical measures, and executive functions (including impulsivity). Moreover, this review found that cardio workouts had beneficial chronic effects on executive functions, attention, and behavior. The non-cardio exercises seemed to show mainly positive results, but its acute and long-term impacts were less reliable than that of cardio-focused exercises in people with ADHD. There were also several reports of cardio training having positive influences on several cognitive, behavioral, and socio-emotional functions. Although further research is required, physical exercise may represent an effective adjuvant therapy (combined with other ADHD treatments) for ADHD. [NPID: ADHD, attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, exercise, cardio, non-cardio, children, cognition, cognitive, behavior, attention]

Original

2019

An Exercise Program Designed for Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder for Use in School Physical Education: Feasibility and Utility

According to this 2019 study, moderate to high intensity exercise can enhance cognitive function and behavior in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) but doing the same exercises for long periods of time or inactivity may result in less engagement and loss of attention. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of exercise sessions designed to engage children with ADHD. There were a total of 12 participants, 6 of whom were diagnosed with ADHD. Each subject undertook 40-minute sessions of short-duration, mixed activities twice a week for 11 weeks. ADHD symptoms and level of exercise enjoyment were reported before the 6- and 11-week mark. There were significant reductions in signs of ADHD in the diagnosed children. Whereas no changes were observed among the control group (those not diagnosed with ADHD). All children equally enjoyed the training sessions. It was deduced that specially designed exercise sessions stimulate children with ADHD and maintain their engagement, while also reducing their ADHD symptoms. The inclusive practice method was implemented in physical education in school and led by the usual teacher. Both children with and without ADHD enjoyed these sessions too and found them to be acceptable. [NPID: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD, attention deficit disorder, exercise, physical activity, attention, ADHD symptoms, school]

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CNP Research Summary can be found in the CNP Library Membership

2017

Managing childhood and adolescent attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with exercise: A systematic review

While the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) currently relies on pharmacologic and behavioral/psychological interventions, this 2017 article focuses on exercise as a potential management strategy. This review looks at both the short-term and long-term effects of exercise on children with ADHD. While there were initially 613 relevant papers on the PubMed and Ovid databases, a total of 30 studies were included in this systematic review. In most ADHD cases, physical exercise reduced cognitive, behavioral, and physical symptoms. The mixed exercise programs seemed to have the largest intervention effects in this regard. Exercise was well tolerated by the subjects, with no adverse effects reported in any of the studies. In conclusion, physical activity (and in particular moderate-to-intense aerobic exercise) provide many benefits to children and adolescents with ADHD. Future studies should investigate the most ideal exercise program to have the optimum effect on ADHD sufferers. [NPID: ADHD, attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, exercise, physical, review, non-pharmacologic, lifestyle]

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