HealthZette – Jennifer Anju Grossman
“Want to help your child do better in school? After homework, take your son for a bike ride, or play a game of catch. Charles Hillman, a professor at the University of Illinois, is a leading researcher on how exercise impacts test scores…His team found that kids who lagged in physical fitness assessments also did poorly on state achievement tests. Why might this be? “This is a tough question, as academic performance involves many aspects of cognition,” he said. “Generally speaking, physical activity has been linked to beneficial changes in brain structure and function at the molecular, cellular, systems, and behavioral levels.” Sarah Buck, an associate professor in physical education at Chicago State University, said there are myriad reasons…“Theories (on this) include increased oxygen flow to the brain, an increase in neurotransmitters, and/or an increase in brain-derived neurotrophin factors,” she said.”(more)