Physical Activity, Cognitive Health and Learning in Youth: A Narrative Umbrella Review
Unterguggenberger S · 2025
grade Dreviewindependentnot-applicable
Sample
7 meta-analyses covering 181 primary studies and approximately 42,000 participants aged 5-17
Population
Healthy children and adolescents aged 5-17
Design
Single-author narrative umbrella review of recent meta-analyses of physical activity, exercise and sport interventions on cognitive outcomes in youth. No quantitative pooling, no AMSTAR or equivalent quality scoring reported, no publication-bias assessment, and no handling of overlap between the seven included meta-analyses. Read in full abstract.
Key findings
Concludes that small positive effects are reported for executive functions and attention while findings for academic performance are inconsistent, and that methodological variability limits interpretability. Directionally consistent with the verdict this topic reaches, but it adds no estimate, no correction and no new evidence — and it selects seven meta-analyses out of a corpus that Bartos et al. 2025 assembled at 215.
Genetic confound
Not addressed; the corpus is intervention meta-analyses, so genetic confounding of treatment contrasts is not at issue.
Effects
| Outcome | Metric | Value | Measure | Timing | Vs | Horizon | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Executive functions and attention | narrative synthesis | small positive effects reported across the seven included reviews | standardized | end of intervention | business-as-usual | end-of-treatment | far-transfer |
| Academic performance | narrative synthesis | findings inconsistent | mixed | end of intervention | business-as-usual | end-of-treatment | domain-skill |