What do you think of putting treadmill desks in schools?

[Taem]

I'm thinking of sending this short letter to the superintendent of the school district explaining the benefits of treadmill desks for our students. The letter is in it's early stages of development where I hardly mention the benefits of the treadmill desk whatsoever, but it will be edited shortly. Anyway, check out the links and tell me what you think, both about the subject in general, and about the flow of my letter. I honestly don't expect anything to change, but sometimes just putting the thought out there to the right people can make a change!

EDIT: Oh, this goes on the assumption that you know what a treadmill desk is in the first place; Treadmill Desk

Treadmill desks for students

Why?

1. Just getting the federal guidelines of 30-minutes of exercise a day is not enough;

Source(s):
Desk jobs are killers!
Our bodies go into 'shutdown'!
Students use treadmill desks at Hinesville school

Students are quite literally loosing life by not moving about. Just getting out and walking about is not giving them the exercise they need in a day.


2. Exercise has been proven to increase learning capacity;

Source(s):
Studying the link between exercise and learning
Physical exercise for a better brain!

Exercise improves test scores, so students who sit in a desk are scoring lower. The movement sends extra oxygen to the brain, promoting increased learning and attention.


3. Obesity and health

Source(s):
Obesity in Children and Teens - AACAP
Adolescent and School Health - CDC

America’s number one epidemic for children is obesity, which can lead to all sorts of health and emotional issues in a child’s future. As shown in #1, sitting for half your day will have severe negative impacts on your health. If students are sitting 6-hours in a school, then come home and do homework for another 1-3 hours, they’ve just spent the majority of their day sitting! Other than forcing kids to eat healthy, getting them to exercise is the key to tackling this obesity problem head on!

Conclusion

Bringing it all together, our children are sitting at desks up to six-hours in a school day and most likely are just scraping by on the federally recommended 30-minutes of exercise, then come home and do homework for another couple of hours a day. Even if a child is enrolled in sports after school, the studies linked to above have shown that our bodies require constant movement to stay healthy. In addition, constant movement has been proven to increase test score and attention in students, lower blood pressure, and promote learning through a healthier lifestyle. Finally, since obesity is such a problem in our country, our schools should lead the charge on facilitating healthy habits by helping them 1. Stay fit, 2. Increase their learning and test scores, and 3. Live longer to be the great leader of our future.

We can do all this by providing our students with treadmill desks. The Hinesville School experiment showed that just by placing treadmill desks in one period class could make a world of difference. This is a start, but the real objective would be to place them in every class.

I hope you enjoy reading this letter and perhaps some good can come from it in the future.

[Jester]

My first thought is: $1,500 * 70,000,000 is about a hundred billion dollars.

I'd be interested in seeing the effect on education. It wouldn't take a very large productivity loss in education to negate any positive effect this might have on health.

But why not? Let's study it - this specific proposal, not just some vague link between exercise and education. Sounds like a kooky, but theoretically possible, improvement.

-Jester

[DeeBye]

Here's an addendum you should make - hook up all those treadmills to generators to meet the electricity needs of the school.

[Taem]

In regards to health, I assume if it can be proven irrevocably that sitting for these long periods without movement was the direct cause of obesity - to a far greater extent than the foods children eat - then schools could be held liable for illnesses caused by obesity. One of the articles I linked to shows that studies have proven this to be the case:

In 2010, a team led by Alpa Patel of the American Cancer Society in Atlanta analyzed the data from a 14-year study of 123,000 middle-aged adults. When they compared mortality rates of those who spent six hours a day or more sitting and those who reported three or fewer hours — and when they took into account other factors such as diet — they found something surprising: Extra time on the couch was associated with a 34 percent higher mortality rate for women and 17 percent higher for men in the 14 years after they joined the study. It is not clear why there is such a big sex difference.

In another study, a team at the University of Queensland in Australia analyzed data on the television viewing habits of 8,800 Australians. They calculated that each hour of television correlated with 22 minutes off the average life expectancy of an adult older than 25. In other words, people who watch six hours of television a day face the prospect of dying, on average, about five years younger than those who don’t watch any.

I think that, perhaps just throwing out articles that are mostly commentary, despite the references in the articles pointing to scientific studies, does not have quite the same effect as pointing directly toward actual studies on the issue:

More physical exercise in a day = less health risks:
Physical activity and clustered cardiovascular risk in children

The more obese children are, the less they expend energy:
Total energy expenditure and physical activity in young Scottish children
This falls into my, 30-minutes of exercise a day during PE does NOT cut it!!!

Proof that inactivity causes disease and death:
Health benefits of physical activity: the evidence

So, it's clear children need exercise, but the real question is, "how much exercise is enough," and so far regarding health, the answer is the more the better! The CDC recommends 60-minutes of exercise a day (bare minimum), but some schools acknowledge our youths get a mere 15-30-minutes worth of exercise during PE, assuming they actually participate.

All the current scientific studies being done suggest that sitting for long periods of time endangers your life far into the future. To bring this together, it's clear the case can be made - with further study -that our school children are currently not getting the required exercise in a day needed to live a healthy life.

I'd be interested in seeing the effect on education. It wouldn't take a very large productivity loss in education to negate any positive effect this might have on health.

Now to address your concerns that the evidence presented in my previously linked articles, in regards to exercise improving ones intelligence, is merely conjecture based on current theories more than actual fact. The following articles prove that the more you exercise, the smarter you get, and more you do it when you're young, the smarter you will remain your entire life:

Early childhood exercise grants greater cognition at old age

The more physical stimulation at a young age gives a higher IQ in the teens

Exercise and Children’s Intelligence, Cognition, and Academic Achievement

Effects of Aerobic Exercise on Overweight Children's Cognitive Functioning

Exercise when older improves cognition
I linked to this mainly to show that at ANY age, the more exercise you get, the smarter you get!

Exercise is brain food!
An interesting article suggesting a highly strenuous exercise might actually be detrimental to learning due to added stress, and that a moderate exercise is the best. This is a good case for continual exercise versus the standard short, 30-minute burst of strenuous activity one might receive during PE. However I can counter that argument with this article that basically says doing a brisk run in 30-minutes as opposed to the standard PE curriculum resulted in net intelligence increase:

http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/hea/5/3/197/


So its proven that the benefits of health and intelligence are linked to increased exercise, however the quality of the workout remains ambiguous in regards to being moderate over a long period, or strenuous over a short time frame. Also, these articles have failed to answer the question of "how much" exercise is the right amount? The CDC conforms with the 850-peer reviewed study citing 60-minutes a day minimum: (Link), but there has been enough scientific studies done that prove that the more exercise one gets, the better the positive health and cognitive impacts are, and yet with our current obesity problem, it's clear the 30-minutes our children get in school is not near enough, however I can find no scientific articles linking extended levels of exercise (above 60-minutes) in middle-school/high-school aged children with increased intelligence, even though all scientific studies done so far concede the more exercise you get, the smarter you will be. I believe a correlation of the two subjects can be drawn, however to be fair on this subject, I did read this article that gave me pause for thought:

6-11% decrease in fine motor skills while using treadmill desk
Clearly, more studies must be done on this subject before any hard conclusions can be drawn. I know that's what you were saying all along, but I guess I had to put it down in writing for myself to come to the same conclusion you did in a single sentence .

What really got me thinking down this path was my child had great difficulty learning in school. His grades were abysmal and he was on the edge of being held back, so naturally, we got him a tutor who was also a physical therapist. She worked with my son and quickly realized he had a lot of extra energy, so instead of having him sit in a chair, got him an exercise ball to sit on. Well, it turns out this Phd certified instructor also knew what she was talking about, and many studies have been done showing improved cognition with students on bouncing balls in schools. Imagine that, after countless centuries doing manual labor our entire lives, us humans do better staying active then sitting in one spot all day?!? Here's a short article on it, first link I found in google, but if you're interested, you can do some research on it yourself: Bouncy Balls. Anyway, he improved greatly and now does just fine in school. I almost forgot about this until recently reading that even if you exercise at the gym everyday, sitting at a desk job can still shave off years of your life.

---

Here's an addendum you should make - hook up all those treadmills to generators to meet the electricity needs of the school.

Lol, I love it! Let me indulge a bit in the satire with you... By why stop there? Think of all that wasted energy using those writing utensils, and imagine for a moment energy collecting devices affixed to the tops of all writing utensils that, when jiggled, produced a small electrical charge capable, by the end of a students school day, of recharging a phone or powering a calculator? Now that's using your fingers!

[Jester]

I don't think the question is whether exercise is good for your health. That's well proven.

Nor is the question whether being healthy is good for your education. I suspect that's also true.

The question is: How much does being on a treadmill all day help or hurt a child's education?

-Jester

Afterthought: That bouncy ball study appears to have had exactly three students. Statistically, with an n of three, I wouldn't be comfortable concluding that outcomes were improved by being on a bouncy ball. Especially when your outcome is "legible words they wrote".

[Kevin]

I don't think the question is whether exercise is good for your health. That's well proven.

Nor is the question whether being healthy is good for your education. I suspect that's also true.

The question is: How much does being on a treadmill all day help or hurt a child's education?

-Jester

Afterthought: That bouncy ball study appears to have had exactly three students. Statistically, with an n of three, I wouldn't be comfortable concluding that outcomes were improved by being on a bouncy ball. Especially when your outcome is "legible words they wrote".

This is important in part because not all exercise is equal and not all humans have the same physiology. Walking on a treadmill and being able to perform most tasks is likely to only have you at a zone 1 heart rate. This does very little for building a foundation or increasing health. It certainly doesn't hurt, and can help some and does help maintain. It's also good for recovery (rest is just as important as exercise).

You need to get into zone 2 to really trigger increased mitochondria production. That's what allows you to "do more with less"; you can perform the same tasks at a lower average heart rate, the human body is always trying to become more efficient at what you make it do. 30 minutes a day in zone 2 is going to do a lot more for most people than 3 hours in zone 1 would. You also need to not be in zone 4 or higher too frequently, over training can be detrimental and take years off your life too. This is of course why 30 minutes of PE a day generally doesn't cut it because it's often not in the most beneficial areas.

Of course most of what I'm quoting is for adults, I haven't looked at studies on children whose bodies are still developing. So I think it would be important to have a specific study on the treadmills themselves as Jester mentions. I'm convinced it will be better than just sitting, I'm not convinced that it's the best use of resources to achieve the goals you want.

[shoju]

I think, in the current attitude, and "me first climate" that the US seems to be stuck in, you will have more kids, and parents, looking for ways to "get out" of using them, than you will parents who are pleased with their introduction.

[kandrathe]

Overall, I think it is a ridiculous notion.

You'd be better off with more organized Phy. Ed. -- take overly intensive capital investment, with high recurring costs, and invest it in better teacher training, including more Phy. Ed. and special education professionals.

[Drasca]

Simpler solution: Remove all those chairs. Make them stand! No sleeping at the desk for you. Bwahahahahah.

[Taem]

Overall, I think it is a ridiculous notion.

You'd be better off with more organized Phy. Ed. -- take overly intensive capital investment, with high recurring costs, and invest it in better teacher training, including more Phy. Ed. and special education professionals.

The problem is what has been proven with numerous studies (article summing up most of the studies) is that the act of sitting for to long takes years off your life expectancy and increases your risk of heart disease. So no matter how much physical exercise the kids exert at PE, they are still going to die sooner with more ailments then if they were made to even stand at their desk all day, which brings me to Drasca's recent post:

Simpler solution: Remove all those chairs. Make them stand! No sleeping at the desk for you. Bwahahahahah.

That is actually the best idea I've heard yet! Here is a really great article on a study done in Australia: LINK . The study was done at the Sax Institute's 45 and Up Study using 222,497 Australian adults 45 years or older with their likelihood of death in the next three years. While most of us don't fit into that last part of the statement, the results learned from said study are striking, that the longer you sit in general, the higher your chances of developing serious issues! Sitting more than four-hours a day will slowly kill you, that's an indisputable fact! So standing at desks instead of sitting is actually a fantastic idea and well within the realm of affordability for schools! Need I even mention that once these "sitting" studies are linked to long term obesity and disease (which I honestly believe they will be), then its only a matter of time until parent groups sue the schools for causing their children to become obese and sick through excessive sitting? I'd prefer our schools to be proactive then to follow the examples of our government; legislation through crisis. I'd like to believe our public schools had our children's best interests at heart.

[FireIceTalon]

I'd like to believe our public schools had our children's best interests at heart.

And that is what is called wishful thinking.

I don't care for this idea in particular. Forced standing sounds like just another avenue of training them to be passive and obedient workers.

[DeeBye]

I think that school should be a place that children want to go to every day, and not a place that they are forced to go to every day.

[Taem]

I think that school should be a place that children want to go to every day, and not a place that they are forced to go to every day.

Completely agree! Do you think standing instead of sitting would incorporate a greater learning experience through improved concentration, and if so, do you think that experience might help students enjoy school more combined with feeling overall healthier, or do you feel if students were required to stand all day, they would feel unable to relax and really start to resent the establishment (even more then they might)? That is something I never considered, was how the students might take such an initiative.

[Hammerskjold]

Do you think standing instead of sitting would incorporate a greater learning experience through improved concentration...

No. At least, not in a setup where there is no combination\alternative. There are times when using a standing setup makes sense. There are times when sitting down makes sense. One will never replace the other completely.

...or do you feel if students were required to stand all day, they would feel unable to relax and really start to resent...

Yes. In an elementary school, prepare for parents taking their kids out and launching complaints, possibly legal actions. Put this in a highschool, and you may incite a prison riot situation.

As for treadmill desks.

Treadmill desks in a school is not practical. Aside from the expense that most schools either can not afford, or will not pay for. It's a potential accident\lawsuit waiting to happen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MUFKfyzRsM

It might be possible to develop and refine treadmill desks, and make it affordable and safe so everyone can have one for say, at 500$. Economy of scale and high demand for quality etc. For argument sake let's say this magically happened. Keep in mind that's still about 100$ less than the price of a dubious\ meh quality treadmill at the moment.

But how practical and probable is it, I'd bet not very. Not when schools have other urgent concerns in their budget.

When some schools have troubles buying basic supplies, maintenance and repair of infrastructures. The chances of buying expensive treadmill desks that have little to dubious benefits, but have many potential headaches, are about zero.

[DeeBye]

I think that school should be a place that children want to go to every day, and not a place that they are forced to go to every day.

Completely agree! Do you think standing instead of sitting would incorporate a greater learning experience through improved concentration

I think that if my son was forced to stand instead of being allowed to sit at his desk while he does his schoolwork, he would not like it.

[kandrathe]

The problem is what has been proven with numerous studies is that the act of sitting for to long takes years off your life expectancy and increases your risk of heart disease. So no matter how much physical exercise the kids exert at PE, they are still going to die sooner with more ailments then if they were made to even stand at their desk all day, which brings me to Drasca's recent post:

... that the longer you sit in general, the higher your chances of developing serious issues! Sitting more than four-hours a day will slowly kill you, that's an indisputable fact! So standing at desks instead of sitting is actually a fantastic idea and well within the realm of affordability for schools! Need I even mention that once these "sitting" studies are linked to long term obesity and disease (which I honestly believe they will be), then its only a matter of time until parent groups sue the schools for causing their children to become obese and sick through excessive sitting? I'd prefer our schools to be proactive then to follow the examples of our government; legislation through crisis. I'd like to believe our public schools had our children's best interests at heart.

I fear you are taking the sensationalism of these studies as amplified by news reporting and doing what everyone always does... twist the truth to fit the narrative. Correlation does not equal causality.

* How many days did these people do at least 20 minutes of cardio exertion?
* How much and what did these people eat?
* Did they smoke?
* Did they work in an industrial job?
* ad infinitum

Lots and lots, and lots of possible causation's for death -- AND, even if you did link sedentary activity as the reason for heart disease, unmarred by diet, unmarred by exercise, unmarred by genetics, why sitting? Why not sleeping? Why not the jacuzzi? It's not like we can't figure out who's got a slow metabolism, and who's running a highly tuned machine. A ten minute stress test on the treadmill at the doctors office shows exactly who's going to die early.

Then, the intuitive leap is that we must spend billions on specialized exercise equipment to task our children with tortures we'd not choose to endure ourselves. Many studies have shown that older people often die soon after retirement, therefore we should abolish retirement.

But... Yes, we do sit too much. And, yes, I agree that the standard classroom pedagogy model in general is a poor way to educate children, and doubly so for boys (ala testosterone). Let's focus on what works in education, which is the reason they are there -- and salt their day with enough large motor burns such that they jump the jitters out and can concentrate on their lessons.

[Drasca]

I slept during tests. It improved my concentration, just before a final review of my answers. Managing mental fatigue was half the battle anyway.

I was mostly kidding about removing chairs, as the comedic timing seemed right given the previous and following posts pointing out the folly of treadmills.

There certainly is a place for standing, and walking about. Acting, group work, art, science projects, workshops (including metal shop, wood shop, cooking, tv production), and anything hands-on: all often best done standing.

There's a place for standing but it's really on a level to integrate with classroom activity-- root level rather than broad sweeping acts.

Still standing up still generally keeps students from falling asleep at least.

[kandrathe]

I slept during tests. It improved my concentration, just before a final review of my answers. Managing mental fatigue was half the battle anyway.

I was mostly kidding about removing chairs, as the comedic timing seemed right given the previous and following posts pointing out the folly of treadmills.

There certainly is a place for standing, and walking about. Acting, group work, art, science projects, workshops (including metal shop, wood shop, cooking, tv production), and anything hands-on: all often best done standing.

There's a place for standing but it's really on a level to integrate with classroom activity-- root level rather than broad sweeping acts.

Still standing up still generally keeps students from falling asleep at least.

I totally agree.