Obesity is a prevalent and ever-expanding issue across the country which affects many aspects of the afflicted lives. Schools can help combat the spread of obesity through the frequency of contact with students and the implementation of physical activity via physical education. However, many districts understaff and underfund physical education.…

Exergames (video games that promote cognitive and physical activity simultaneously) benefit executive function (EF) in elderly populations. It has been suggested that exergames may induce larger effects than cognitive or exercise training alone, but few reviews have synthesized the causal factors of exergames on EF from experimental research with…

Background: College students are at risk of the "freshman 15," consisting of weight gain during their university studies. Stress has been linked with unhealthy dietary intake and weight in adults in the general literature. Little is known about the key patterns of dietary intake, eating behaviors, and physical activity in relation to…

To assist readers who have specific interests, the WSF [Women's Sports Foundation] has created a series of Research Briefs from Her Life Depends On It III. Her Life Depends On It III is the Women's Sports Foundation's comprehensive report that reviews existing and emerging research on the links between participation in sport and physical activity…

Purpose: This systematic review describes the state of the art of the impact of hypothyroidism on exercise tolerance and physical performance capacity in untreated and treated patients with hypothyroidism. Method: A systematic computer-aided search was conducted using biomedical databases. Relevant studies in English, German, and Dutch, published…

Evidence strongly supports a positive, causal effect of physical activity on bone strength and suggests long-term benefits of childhood physical activity to the prevention of osteoporosis. The contribution of healthy bone development in youth is likely to be as important to fracture prevention as the amount of late adulthood bone loss. Families,…

Recently, the lack of physical activity and increasing rates of childhood obesity have received a great deal of attention in the United States. One way to combat inactivity in children is to utilize physical education programs as a means to promote active lifestyles. There is not, however, a consensus concerning how physical education programs can…

Research has shown that bone tissue responds to the forces of gravity and muscle contraction. The benefits of weight-bearing exercise in preventing or reversing bone mass loss related to osteoporosis is reviewed. The effects of weightlessness and immobilization, and the possible effects of athletic amenorrhea, on bone mineral density are…

Although reports on the positive effects of fitness and exercise predominate in the exercise literature, some researchers describe frequent exercise as compulsive or addictive behavior. This paper addresses these "negative addictions" of exercise. As early as 1970, researchers recognized the addictive qualities of exercise. Short-term…

In terms of physical impact, recent studies suggest that many benefits previously attributed to exercise as a factor in weight loss do not exist. Researchers do seem to agree that exercise does have a positive effect on body composition during weight loss. (IAH)

Perceived exertion scales, based on subjective perception of energy output, are gaining respect as prescribing and monitoring tools for individual exercise programs. A review of recent literature indicates growing research interest in applications for individuals who are elderly, inactive, or subject to medical conditions such as angina. (IAH)

Reports on the results of three epidemiologic studies of orthopedic running and exercise injuries in exercisers present information regarding relationships between type of injury and participant age, gender, exercise level, exercise surface, and physical fitness. (Author/CB)

Physical education should be considered a basic component of education since it contributes to the total development of the individual. However, physical education objectives have not been reached, in spite of research supporting the goals and a large percentage of students participating in physical education programs. (JN)

Oxygen uptake and heart rate kinetics for submaximum exercise (bicycle riding) were compared in prepubescent boys and adult men. Resulting data suggest that children and adults do not differ significantly in cardiorespiratory adjustments during low-intensity exercise. (Authors/PP)

The perceptual responses of individuals at different levels of physical fitness to absolute exercise intensities were compared. Perceived exertion, as measured by the Rating of Perceived Exertion scale, did not discriminate between subjects who were physically fit and those who were not, despite differences in physiological strain. (Author/PP)