Pediatrics & Therapeutics
Open Access

Abstract

The Effect of Acute Aerobic Exercise on Spontaneous Brain Activity in Children

Mathilde St-Louis-Deschênes, Robert Davis Moore and Dave Ellemberg

The present study examined the immediate effect of a single session of sub maximal exercise on brain activation in children. Twelve 9- to 11-year-old boys pedaled 30 minutes on a cycle ergometer at ~65% of their maximum heart rate maximum. Electrophysiological activity was recorded before physical exercise, and10-, 20- and 30 minutes post-exercise. The results indicated that relative spectral power in the alpha1 band (8-10 Hz) decreased from 10 to 20 minutes post-exercise, and that relative spectral power in the alpha2 band (10-12 Hz) increased 20 and 30 minutes post exercise when compared to pre-exercise measurements. These concomitant changes occurring in the alpha1 and in the alpha2 bands are suggestive of an increased in attentional vigilance. The present results also suggest that a single session of sub maximal exercise produces changes in the spontaneous electro-cortical activity of the brain that last at least 30 minutes post-exercise.