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Since July 5, all children are officially on summer vacation. A necessary rest time for schoolchildren (as well as for their parents!) welcomed with joy. But according to an Australian study, these vacations would also have a negative impact. Explanation.
Since last week, children have been enjoying their long-awaited summer holidays: travel, late bedtimes, swimming for some… A welcome freedom after months of studying. But in our time, this time is no longer necessarily used in the right way. A study by researchers from the University of South Australia even demonstrates a notable drawback.
More screen time than the rest of the year
In fact, summer vacations would further extend children’s screen time and sedentary lifestyles, according to research conducted on 14 million schoolchildren. Children aged 5 to 18 would thus have fewer time constraints, and almost unlimited access to screens during the summer vacations, promoting sedentary lifestyles and weight gain.
The phenomenon would particularly affect disadvantaged children. And a single summer would be enough to cause a decline in health: researchers have thus noticed that compared to their performance at the end of the school year, children run out of breath more quickly when they return to school at the start of the school year, proof of a lack of endurance.
“During the summer holidays, it’s normal for schoolchildren to become less active, eat more junk food and spend more time in front of screens. It’s important that they have some free time. But what we’ve noticed is that these behaviours are widespread enough to have significant negative impacts on health.” warns lead author Emily Eglitis in a communicated.
Intellectually, it’s not great either: according to the same study, the long break from the school system led to a significant decline in their learning abilities.
What is the ideal activity time according to your child’s age?
For a beneficial vacation, the ideal is to keep your children moving and alternate quiet times with games and outings to stay in shape (and reduce the negative impacts of screens). According to the recommendations of Anses (National Agency for Food Safety), each elderly person requires a specific amount of activity time.
- For children under 5 years old: Three hours of physical activity per day are recommended. The idea is to encourage play and pleasure, and to diversify activities: walking, running, jumping, throwing, balancing, etc.
- For children aged 6 to 11, A minimum of one hour of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity is recommended each day.
- For teenagers aged 12 to 17, One hour of moderate to high intensity physical activity is recommended every day, which works the muscles and improves endurance and flexibility: gymnastics, climbing, dancing, ball games, etc.
To achieve this, all means are good! If you are not going on vacation or do not have time to organize sports outings, think about clubs, associations, leisure centers, and accept invitations from your children’s friends or ask family.
Slideshow: Summer Vacation: 20 Games and Toys to Take for Fun