La Educación Física escolar no afecta de forma aguda a las funciones ejecutivas en niños
Un ensayo controlado aleatorizado
Resumen
La práctica de actividad física estimula las funciones ejecutivas, pero la evidencia sobre los efectos agudos de la Educación Física escolar sigue siendo inconsistente debido a las variaciones en la duración de las clases y las restricciones de la rutina escolar. Este estudio investigó y comparó el efecto agudo de dos duraciones distintas de clases (25 y 45 minutos) sobre el rendimiento cognitivo en niños de 9 a 10 años. Veinticuatro participantes (9,54 ± 0,51 años; 62,5 % masculinos) fueron aleatorizados en tres grupos: clases tradicionales de Educación Física de 25 minutos, de 45 minutos y un grupo control (clase teórica de 45 minutos). La evaluación de las funciones ejecutivas, realizada antes e inmediatamente después de cada condición, reveló un efecto principal significativo de tiempo en el tiempo de respuesta del control inhibitorio (F(1,21) = 12,719; p = 0,002), con mejoras generalizadas en todos los grupos, incluido el control. No se identificaron otros efectos significativos, lo que demuestra que la duración de la clase no moduló el rendimiento cognitivo. Las sesiones de 25 o 45 minutos no generaron mejoras agudas en el control inhibitorio ni en la memoria de trabajo en escolares, tampoco demostraron un efecto de dosis-respuesta. A pesar de esto, el mantenimiento del rendimiento confirma que la participación en las clases de Educación Física durante la rutina escolar no compromete las funciones ejecutivas de los estudiantes.
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Derechos de autor 2026 Lecturas: Educación Física y Deportes
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