Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological data
Studies have shown that physical activity (PA) can provide a helpful, low-risk, and cost-effective intervention for children and adolescents suffering from mental health problems. This longitudinal study aimed to assess whether PA prevents the development of mental health problems, such as attention...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2022.933139/full |
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| author | Parisa Ganjeh York Hagmayer Thomas Meyer Ronny Kuhnert Ulrike Ravens-Sieberer Nicole von Steinbuechel Aribert Rothenberger Andreas Becker |
| author_facet | Parisa Ganjeh York Hagmayer Thomas Meyer Ronny Kuhnert Ulrike Ravens-Sieberer Nicole von Steinbuechel Aribert Rothenberger Andreas Becker |
| author_sort | Parisa Ganjeh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Studies have shown that physical activity (PA) can provide a helpful, low-risk, and cost-effective intervention for children and adolescents suffering from mental health problems. This longitudinal study aimed to assess whether PA prevents the development of mental health problems, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents. Data were analyzed from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) collected from more than 15.000 children and adolescents at three different time points over a period of more than 10 years. Parents scored the PA of the study participants on three frequency levels according to WHO recommendations, and mental health problems were assessed by means of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). The total problem score (SDQ-Total) and the hyperactivity/inattention symptoms sub-scale (SDQ-H/I) were used in an autoregressive cross-lagged model to examine their relationship with PA. The results showed that PA of boys and girls at preschool age was inversely associated with the occurrence of mental health problems and, in particular, ADHD symptoms about 6 years later. Higher levels of PA were associated with better general mental health and fewer ADHD symptoms at the next time point (Wave 1). These effects were not observed from preadolescence (Wave 1) to adolescence (Wave 2), neither for girls nor for boys. These findings indicate that medium-to-high PA may be a supportive factor for good mental health in children in preschool and elementary school. Future studies will have to show whether PA may be a helpful add-on for interventional programs for improving general mental health and alleviating ADHD symptoms among children and adolescents. |
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e568af6adaf44bfb94becc4f1427d7b5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1662-5153 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T21:43:47Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-e568af6adaf44bfb94becc4f1427d7b52022-12-22T03:15:42ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience1662-51532022-09-011610.3389/fnbeh.2022.933139933139Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological dataParisa Ganjeh0York Hagmayer1Thomas Meyer2Ronny Kuhnert3Ulrike Ravens-Sieberer4Nicole von Steinbuechel5Aribert Rothenberger6Andreas Becker7Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, GermanyDepartment of Cognitive Science and Decision Psychology, Georg-Elias-Müller-Institute for Psychology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, GermanyDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, GermanyUnit Mental Health, Department of Epidemiology and Health Monitoring, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, GermanyDepartment of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, GermanyInstitute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, GermanyDepartment of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, GermanyDepartment of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, GermanyStudies have shown that physical activity (PA) can provide a helpful, low-risk, and cost-effective intervention for children and adolescents suffering from mental health problems. This longitudinal study aimed to assess whether PA prevents the development of mental health problems, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents. Data were analyzed from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) collected from more than 15.000 children and adolescents at three different time points over a period of more than 10 years. Parents scored the PA of the study participants on three frequency levels according to WHO recommendations, and mental health problems were assessed by means of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). The total problem score (SDQ-Total) and the hyperactivity/inattention symptoms sub-scale (SDQ-H/I) were used in an autoregressive cross-lagged model to examine their relationship with PA. The results showed that PA of boys and girls at preschool age was inversely associated with the occurrence of mental health problems and, in particular, ADHD symptoms about 6 years later. Higher levels of PA were associated with better general mental health and fewer ADHD symptoms at the next time point (Wave 1). These effects were not observed from preadolescence (Wave 1) to adolescence (Wave 2), neither for girls nor for boys. These findings indicate that medium-to-high PA may be a supportive factor for good mental health in children in preschool and elementary school. Future studies will have to show whether PA may be a helpful add-on for interventional programs for improving general mental health and alleviating ADHD symptoms among children and adolescents.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2022.933139/fullphysical activitymental health problemsADHDlongitudinal relationshipchildrenadolescents |
| spellingShingle | Parisa Ganjeh York Hagmayer Thomas Meyer Ronny Kuhnert Ulrike Ravens-Sieberer Nicole von Steinbuechel Aribert Rothenberger Andreas Becker Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological data Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience physical activity mental health problems ADHD longitudinal relationship children adolescents |
| title | Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological data |
| title_full | Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological data |
| title_fullStr | Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological data |
| title_full_unstemmed | Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological data |
| title_short | Physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in children and adolescents: A cross-lagged panel analysis of long-term follow-up epidemiological data |
| title_sort | physical activity and the development of general mental health problems or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder adhd symptoms in children and adolescents a cross lagged panel analysis of long term follow up epidemiological data |
| topic | physical activity mental health problems ADHD longitudinal relationship children adolescents |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2022.933139/full |
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