Walking might not seem much to many people, but did you know that if you encouraged your child to walk to school or to nearby areas, you are actually lowering your child’s risk of atherosclerosis and a host of other heart problems later in life?

That’s what researchers from the University of Buffalo discovered when they conducted their study on school-age children.

The study, which was published in the peer-reviewed journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, led researchers to conclude that mild exercise (even in the form of walking to school) can reduce a child’s reactivity to regular stresses (like taking an exam in school).

The term cardiovascular reactivity refers to the changes in cardiac output and cardiac activity of a person in response to stressful situations.  Cardiovascular reactivity is also seen as the beginning stage of heart problems in children.

The researchers wanted to find out if there was a relatively simple way to prevent this from happening - because if something could be done about the cardiovascular reactivity when the child was still young, then the child would be at less risk for heart problems later in life.

The study was made up of data from a total of 40 school-age children with a 1:1 ratio (boys & girls). The respondents were asked to simulate commuting to school and walking to school - this was done by using exercise equipment (a treadmill) and a projector that was used to present images that made walking/commuting to school more realistic.

After the simulation, the children were then asked to undergo a Stroop test, where they were required to correctly identify the colors of words that had misleading names.

Those who simulated walking to school had an average pulse rate increase of 3 while those who simulated commuting to school had a pulse rate increase of 11. The big difference between the two groups prompted the researchers to recommend walking as an early deterrent to heart problems.

Source:
sciencedaily.com