Children and young people today are under greater psychological stress than ever before: Since the pandemic, anxiety disorders, depression, difficulties at school and fears about the future in childhood have increased. This is shown, among other things, by data from the joint project “Motor Skills Module Study (MoMo)”, which is headed by Professor Alexander Woll from the Institute of Sports and Sports Science at KIT. He was a co-author of a statement in which the National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina calls for the strengthening of young people. According to this, the ability to self-regulate should be specifically promoted in schools and daycare centers and anchored as a guiding perspective in the German education system.
Exercise as a Key to Mental Health
“Children and young people today are facing major challenges due to fundamental changes in their world,” says Woll, who was the only sports scientist involved in the statement. Better self-regulation can enable them to achieve personal goals and react flexibly to changes. In addition to skills such as dealing with emotions or social conflicts, physical activity is essential. “Health problems, but also psychological impairments, are closely linked to a lack of physical activity, especially in childhood and adolescence,” says Woll. It has been scientifically proven that body-oriented support strategies support self-regulation and stress resilience in children and young people.
Too little physical activity
The MoMo study collects data on health and physical activity among children and young people in Germany over a period of 18 years. “Our current results show that only 17 percent of boys and 13 percent of girls between the ages of 6 and 17 achieve the WHO’s recommendation of one hour of moderate to intense physical activity per day,” says the sports scientist. The MoMo study is a joint project of KIT, the Karlsruhe University of Education, the University of Konstanz and the Humboldt University of Berlin.
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