Active kids focus better — a little.
Physical activity interventions show small positive associations with attention and mathematics performance in children and adolescents, though the effect sizes are modest and sensitive to small-study bias.
What they did
A meta-analysis pooled 40 randomised trials of physical-activity interventions in children and adolescents, measuring attention and mathematics performance.
What they found
Small positive associations with both, with effect sizes that are modest and sensitive to small-study bias — the trim-and-fill analyses point to publication bias in the field.
What it actually shows
Meta-analysis of 40 RCTs; trim-and-fill analyses suggest publication bias and imputed missing studies; 95% confidence intervals of adjusted estimates included null, indicating uncertainty; subgroup comparisons were descriptive and formal tests of differences between subgroups were not conducted.
Meta-analysis · Eur J Pediatr
Where it fits
Movement looks good for young brains, but this evidence says 'helps a little', not 'transforms grades'.
The source
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