Effects Of Karate Training And General Physical Activity On Executive Function Among Preschool Children

PURPOSE: How to improve the efficacy of executive function has become an important research topic in many fields. The possible advantage of Karate training over general physical activity (GPA) on executive functions in preschool children is unclear. METHODS: In this randomized trial, we recruited children 5 to 6 years of age who were receiving Karate or structured GPA training at a summer camps. Sixty-four participants were randomly assigned into two groups who received two different interventions, in which the Karate training was compared with structured GPA training (control) on the efficacy of executive function. Both groups were trained for 6 weeks, with 3 times per week and 40 minutes for each session. The exercise intensity was moderate and monitored by the heart rate. Before and after interventions, Day-Night Stroop task and 1-Back task were used to measure inhibition function and updating function, respectively. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 20 software for Windows. All data are reported as mean ± SD. A P value ≤0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. RESULTS: After 6-wk Karate training, the completion time of Day-Night Stroop task for the group participants was significantly decreased by 8.5% (≤0.001) and the accuracy was significantly increased by 8.3% (≤0.008), respectively. For the Karate group, the reaction time of 1-back task was also significantly decreased by 19.3% (≤0.001) and the accuracy was significantly increased by 16.1% (≤0.001), respectively. For the preschoolers in the GPA group, however, the significant change after 6 weeks training was only observed in the completion time of Day-Night Stroop that was decreased by 3.7% (≤0.008). CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that the Karate training significantly improved the executive function in terms of inhibitory and updating functions in very young children over a period of 6 weeks, as compared with the structured GPA training, which led to uncertain or inconclusive results.