Investigation of relationship between physical fitness and attention levels in athlete children

Introduction: Physical fitness is the ability to perform daily tasks vividly and carefully without excessive fatigue. It is also a term that defines the maximum aerobic capacity that can be adjusted. Attention, on the other hand, is when the mind focuses on one of the objects that appear to be several possible objects or strings of thought. Although it is known that physical fitness in children has an effect on cognitive functions, the relationship between physical fitness and attention levels is unknown in children who do regular sports. The aim of our study is to examine the relationship between physical fitness and attention levels in athletes children aged 7-12 years. Methods: The study was planned as is a cross-sectional study. Children participating in the study were divided into 2 groups as athletes and non-athletes (control). A total of 110 children, 55 athletes and 55 non-athletes were included in the study. The socio-demographic information of the children was recorded. Physical fitness levels of the children were evaluated with the Eurofit Test Battery. Attention levels were determined using the Bourdon Attention Test. The Eurofit Test Battery consist of 9 subtests that include helath-related physical fitness and performance-related physical fitness parameters. Relationship of variables with each other was evaluated by Pearson correlation analysis. Independent Sample T test was used for comparison between groups. Results: 55 athletes (25 boys; 30 girls) and 55 non-athletes (26 boys; 29 girls) participated in the study. The average age of the participants was 11.63±0.77, 11.80±0.67 years respectively. When the athlete and control groups were compared, a significant difference was found between Flamingo Balance Test, Tapping Plate Test, Sit and Reach Flexibility Test, Standing Long Jump Test (SLJT), Hand Grip Strength Test (HGST), Shuttle Test, 10*5 meter Shuttle Run Test, Pull-on Twisted Arms Test (PTAT) and Bourdon Attention Test (BAT) in favor of the athletes children (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant relationship was found between BAT value and SLJT score, HGST score, Shuttle Test score and PTAT score in athlete children (p<0.05). There was no statistically significant relationship between physical fitness parameters and BAT value in the control group (p>0.05).Conclusion: As a result of the study, it was found that some physical fitness parameters and attention levels were correlated with each other in children. We think that physical activity and sports activities should be added to a child whose attention level is desired to be improved in addition to attention development programs.