No play makes your son a dull boy: Study

Is your son in primary school showing poor reading and maths skills? Blame it on the sedentary lifestyle, suggests a study.

The study showed that adolescent boys spending less time in physical activity and more hours in sitting idle are prone to show poor academic skills.

"Boys who had a combination of low levels of physical activity and high levels of sedentary time had the poorest reading skills through Grades 1-3," said Eero Haapala from the University of Eastern Finland.

On the other hand, increasing physical activity and reducing sedentary time, may improve academic achievement, the researchers said.

It could improve reading skills amongst boys in Grades 1-3.

This was also associated with better arithmetic skills among boys in Grade 1.

However, in girls, there were no such strong and consistent associations of physical activity and sedentary time with reading or arithmetic skills, the study observed.

For the study, the team investigated the longitudinal associations of physical activity and sedentary time with reading and arithmetic skills in 153 children aged six-eight years in Grades 1-3 in primary schools.

The study was recently published in the Journal of Science and Medicine and Sport.