A scientific study conducted in Australia found that electronic health applications encourage children and adolescents to exercise, eat healthy foods, and maintain their weight.
A research team from the University of South Australia analyzed health data related to more than 133,000 children and adolescents under the age of 18, and found that health digital applications that are concerned with monitoring the vital functions of the body, exercising, and eating healthy foods encourage the user to exercise at a rate that increases between 10 and 20 minutes per day compared to those who do not use these types of applications.
The study published by the scientific journal “Journal of Medical Internet Research” showed that some of these applications led to reducing the period of inactivity in children and adolescents by 20 to 25 minutes per day, and improving weight and body fat levels, but they did not greatly affect the users’ sleeping hours.
Ben Seng, head of the study team, says: “Although most young people know the importance of healthy nutrition, regular exercise, and getting plenty of sleep, many of them do not adhere to proper health controls, which increases their risk of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.”
He added in statements to the website “Health Day”, which specializes in medical research: “This study has shown that health maintenance applications can significantly improve the rates of physical activities practiced by children and adolescents, as well as their nutrition and weight, and put them on the right path to maintaining their health.”
Singh expressed his belief that children and teenagers feel comfortable dealing with modern technology, and therefore they do not find it difficult to deal with these types of applications.
The World Health Organization estimates that 80% of adolescents do not engage in sufficient physical activity, and that approximately 390 million children and adolescents between the ages of 5 and 19 are overweight, including 160 million who complain of obesity.