Active parents have more active children

Scientists from Britain have found in recent studies that women who prefer an active lifestyle have children who are more active. The experts made such conclusions after analyzing the lifestyle of half a thousand women and their four-year-old children.

But many women are still not getting enough physical activity, according to scientists. For a week, researchers from two universities in the United States monitored the heart rates of women and their children to measure their activity.

The results, which were published by experts in one of the journals, say that the program for improving children's health should start with their mothers. Experts concluded that a child is not naturally active; it is the parents who form healthy habits in the first years of a child's life.

The research project involved more than 500 women with four-year-old children, who were fitted with heart rate monitors and accelerometers on their chests. The volunteers had to wear the equipment at all times, even while sleeping or bathing.

One of the leading specialists of the project, an employee of the London College, noted that women who led an active lifestyle, also had children who were more active. Although scientists also assume the opposite, that active children do not allow mothers to sit still and force them to move all the time. However, scientists noted that the data are interconnected, and the activity of one inevitably leads to the activity of the other.

At the same time, scientists were able to establish that the child's activity increased by 10% when the mother was active. Although such minor differences may seem trivial, over the course of a month or even a year, the indicators may become more significant.

In addition, the woman’s activity was influenced by some factors, such as other children, work (which was taken into account by scientists during the study).

During the study, scientists found that a woman who has become a mother becomes less active, which inevitably affects the child. According to experts, even a small increase in activity can have a positive effect on the woman and the child. Experts recommend moving more every day - at least walking in the fresh air.

If the whole family starts leading an active lifestyle, it can significantly improve the child's health. Active games develop coordination in a child, especially at primary school age. There are various types of physical exercises that can be done together with children: swimming, running, a special gym with exercise machines. Such joint sports activities will provide an opportunity for closer communication between parents and children and will contribute to the child's development. In addition to physical exercises, it is important to pay attention to proper nutrition. For children, one hour of activity per day is quite enough, for adults - two and a half hours per week.

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