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. 2020 Aug 17;17(16):5972.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph17165972.

Physical Activity and Academic Achievement: An Umbrella Review

Ana Barbosa  1 , Stephen Whiting  1   2   3 , Philippa Simmonds  3 , Rodrigo Scotini Moreno  3 , Romeu Mendes  1   2   3 , João Breda  2   3
Affiliations

Physical Activity and Academic Achievement: An Umbrella Review

Ana Barbosa et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: This umbrella review aimed to summarise the evidence presented in systematic reviews and meta-analyses regarding the effect of physical activity on academic achievement of school-age children and adolescents.

Methods: A comprehensive electronic search for relevant systematic reviews and meta-analyses were performed in Pubmed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Scopus, and Latin American and Caribbean of Health Sciences Information System, and reference lists of the included studies, from inception to May 2020. Studies were included if they were systematic reviews or meta-analyses, included school-age children or adolescents, the intervention included physical activity, and the outcome was the academic achievement. Two independent authors screened the text of potentially eligible studies and assessed the methodological quality of the studies using the AMSTAR 2 tool.

Results: Forty-one systematic reviews and meta-analyses that examined the effects of physical activity on children and adolescents' academic achievement were identified. Overall, the systematic reviews reported small positive or mixed associations between physical activity and academic achievement. From meta-analyses, it was observed that physical activity had null or small-to-medium positive effects on academic achievement. Chronic physical activity showed a medium positive effect on academic achievement, and acute physical activity did not demonstrate benefits.

Conclusions: Physical activity seems not to be detrimental to school-age children and adolescents' academic achievement, and may, in fact, be beneficial.

Keywords: academic achievement; adolescents; children; exercise; physical activity; school-age.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Disclaimer: J.B. and S.W. are staff members of the WHO. R.M. is a WHO consultant. The authors alone are responsible for the views expressed in this publication, and they do not necessarily represent the views, decisions, or policies of the institutions with which they are affiliated.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram. LILACS, Latin American and Caribbean of Health Sciences Information System; PA, Physical Activity.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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