This article by Doctor Mercola focuses on the positive benefits of increased exercise in reducing the symptoms of ADHD. I think it’s also reasonable to see the benefits to all children as exercise increases brain activity and dopamine and serotonin. Then when that exercise happens in nature, I would imagine the benefits are even greater again. To take a slight tangent, I’ll just mention that there’s a very interesting interview with Florence Williams author of The Nature Fix on nature being a powerful remedy for PTSD in our Self-Healing Group.
“Exercise Boosts School Performance, Especially in Kids with ADHD
School performance often suffers in children with ADHD, and is a key reason why many parents consent to medications. Yet, exercise is well known to boost test scores and academic performance in children, and this association is particularly strong among kids with ADHD.
One recent study found, for instance, that a before- and after-school physical activity program reduced inattention and moodiness among young children at risk of ADHD, as well as improved math and reading test scores.4
Other research revealed that 26 minutes of physical activity each day helped to significantly reduce ADHD symptoms in grade-schoolers.5 In a TED talk from 2012, John Ratey, an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard suggested that exercise be viewed as medication for ADHD, as it triggers your brain to release dopamine and serotonin.
This improves mood and boosts cognitive performance. You can view that talk below, but unfortunately this simple intervention hasn’t caught on the way prescription meds have.
https://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2014/10/17/exercise-adhd-medication.aspx
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