Study shows students sit too long, would benefit from movement during class
A new collaborative study between professors from the UCLA Department of World Arts and Cultures and the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health found that most college students sit too much and exercise too little. The qualitative study, which was co-authored by Angelia Leung, associate professor emerita in the School of the Arts and Architecture World Arts and Cultures/Dance department found that allowing students to stand up, stretch and move around periodically during class may help improve their alertness.
"College students sit too much and exercise too little, researchers found in a new collaborative study between professors from the UCLA Department of World Arts and Cultures and the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.
(Jenny Hy/Daily Bruin) The qualitative study, which was published in the Journal of American College Health earlier this month, examined answers from focus groups of undergraduate students, graduate students and professors, said Angelia Leung, one of the co-authors of the study and an associate professor emerita in the department of World Arts and Cultures/Dance.
Students reported sitting for eight to 10 hours per day, including in class, during leisure time, work and on their commutes, according to results from the study.
Allowing students to stand up, stretch and move around periodically during class may help improve their alertness, Leung said. However, students may not be likely to do so because it is not socially accepted, she added.
“If you’re sitting and you can’t move or you’re inhibited from moving … because of social inhibitions … your energy goes down, and your concentration goes down,” she said."— Celia Janes, Feb. 21, 2020
This post is an excerpt. Read the full article on the Daily Bruin website.
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