Stars 4 Kidz

On occasion, it can be tiring trying to keep up with an active five-year-old. If you’ve been around an active child of this age, or if you have one of your own, you may have wished in vain that the kid would just “veg out” for a little while. Current research, however, is validating the long-term health benefits of this whirlwind of activity.

In fact, rather than attempting to slow these little ones down, five-year-olds should be encouraged to be as active as possible, according to a new University of Iowa study. What’s the rationale? “Because it pays off as they grow older,” said Kathleen Janz, lead author of the study and professor of health and sport studies in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Being active at age five assists kids in staying lean as they get older even if they don’t continue to be as active further into childhood. “We call this effect ‘banking’ because the kids benefit later on, similar to having a savings account at a bank. The protective effect is independent of what happens in between,” Janz went on to say.

Using an accelerometer that gauges movement every minute, and a distinctive scanner that meticulously measures bone, fat, and muscle tissue, the UI team calculated the body fat and activity level of 333 children at ages five, eight, and eleven. The kids put on accelerometers to tabulate their activity level for up to five days, affording much more reliable data than depending on kids or parents to track minutes of exercise.

The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, indicates that kids who are active at age five end up with less fat at age eight and eleven, even when controlling for their accumulated level of activity. The average five-year-old in the study got thirty minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per day. For every ten minutes on top of that, kids had one-third of a pound less fat tissue at ages eight and eleven.

Though supplementary investigation is required to discover exactly what takes place in the body of these active kids, Janz postulated that there was a possibility that the active 5-year-olds didn’t develop as many fat cells, that their insulin response improved, or that a process occurred metabolically that supplied some defense down the road even as the kids became less active.

Nonetheless, as appealing as this study is, weight moderation is not the only benefit of early exercise. As a chiropractor I have noticed in my own practice that active kids have far less common childhood health challenges, such as catching colds and the flu. Chiropractic care is, of course, exceptionally beneficial in helping kids to stay healthier. But, in addition, the stimulation to the brain that takes place during activities, especially those that necessitate “cross pattern” motor movements of the larger muscles, i.e., right hand/left leg and left hand/right leg, such as crawling, running, climbing, and skipping, also boosts the autoimmune system and keeps kids healthier.

Too many children these days are overweight and unhealthy. Though part of the problem is an inappropriate diet, lack of exercise is also a major contributing factor. If you have a five-year-old who prefers to watch television or play video games rather than participating in more active play, it is up to you to help your child to get up and get moving into healthier activities. Moderate to vigorous exercise will not only benefit your child now, but will help to build a healthier future. You can bank on it!

Dr. Jamie Phillips, is a consultant for Bloczone Marketing, a chiropractic marketing company specializing in chiropractic websites that attract new patients. She also instructs chiropractors in Honolulu and across the country how to market their chiropractic practices on the internet.

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