{"id":12761,"date":"2013-05-08T11:54:01","date_gmt":"2013-05-08T15:54:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/?p=12761"},"modified":"2013-05-09T01:35:05","modified_gmt":"2013-05-09T05:35:05","slug":"study-suggests-teen-girls-who-exercise-are-less-likely-to-be-violent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/2013\/05\/study-suggests-teen-girls-who-exercise-are-less-likely-to-be-violent\/","title":{"rendered":"Study suggests teen girls who exercise are less likely to be violent"},"content":{"rendered":"

From the American Academy of Pediatrics<\/span> press release via EurekAlert!:<\/p>\n

\"girlsRegular exercise is touted as an antidote for many ills, including mg{stress}, mg{depression} and mg{obesity}. Physical activity also may help decrease violent behavior among adolescent girls<\/strong>, according to new research to be presented Monday, May 6, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Washington, DC.<\/p>\n

Researchers from Columbia University analyzed results of a 2008 survey completed by 1,312 students at four inner-city high schools in New York to determine if there was an association between regular exercise and violence-related behaviors.<\/p>\n

“Violence in neighborhoods spans the entire length of this country and disproportionately affects the poor and racial and ethnic minorities<\/strong>. It results in significant losses to victims, perpetrators, families and communities and costs our country billions of dollars,” said lead author Noe D. Romo, MD, primary care research fellow in community health in the Department of Child and Adolescent Health at Columbia University, New York. “There is a need for innovative methods to identify potential interventions to address this issue and lessen the burden it is having on our society.”<\/p>\n

The survey included questions on how often students exercised, how many sit-ups they did and the time of their longest run in the past four weeks as well as whether they played on an organized sports team in the past year.<\/p>\n

Students also were asked if they had carried a weapon in the past 30 days or if they were in a physical fight or in a gang in the past year.<\/p>\n

Nearly three-quarters of the respondents were Latino, and 19 percent were black. Fifty-six percent were female.<\/p>\n

Results showed that females who reported exercising regularly had decreased odds of being involved in violence-related behaviors<\/strong>:<\/p>\n