Go outside and play! It’s a common plea among parents, especially during those long summer months. But sending kids outside is beneficial to more than mom and dad’s sanity. Of course, we are all likely aware of how important physical activity is to combating problems like childhood obesity. Play time is also important in helping children develop social skills. Did you know that outdoor play can also help lessen the manifestation of symptoms of ADHD in children with the disorder?
For several years, Frances E. Kuo, PhD, and Andrea Faber Taylor, PhD, from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, have studied the impact of spending time outdoors on children with ADHD. An earlier study was published in the September 2004 American Journal of Public Health. A 2008 study showed that open green spaces are best for helping a child’s attention improve. A later study, “Could Exposure to Everyday Green Spaces Help Treat ADHD? Evidence from Children’s Play Settings,” was published in 2011 in Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being.
In an interview in ADDitudeMag.com, the researchers say “that as little as 20 minutes of outdoor exposure in an open green space could potentially buy you a couple of hours in the afternoon to get homework done with your child.”
So get outside with your child – “There’s little risk involved and, possibly, much to gain.”