Mental health outcomes of the Daily Mile in elementary school children: a single‐arm pilot study

• Published in: Child and adolescent mental health 2022-11, Vol.27 (4), p.361-368
• Main Authors: Arkesteyn, Anke, campfort, Davy, Firth, Joseph, Damme, Tine
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Child; Child & adolescent mental health; Child, Preschool; Exercise; Female; Humans; Male; Mental health; Outcome Assessment, Health Care; Pilot Projects; Schools; Self Concept
• ISSN: 1475-357X; 1475-3588
• DOI: 10.1111/camh.12573

Background School‐based physical activity (PA) programmes such as The Daily Mile (TDM) are widely promoted to address shortfalls in meeting PA recommendations. This study is the first to examine TDM (a daily one mile outdoor run/walk performed at a self‐selected pace during school hours) on mental health, self‐esteem and self‐perceived competence of elementary schoolchildren. Methods In total, 550 children (n = 289 boys, aged 5–13 years) were recruited from seven schools across Flanders. The Self‐Perception Profile for Children (SPPC) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) were completed before, during and post‐intervention. One‐way repeated measures ANOVA was used to examine changes over time. Additional subgroup analyses of children with low scores on the SPPC (−1SD) were performed. Results Only perceived global self‐worth (SPPC) was significantly higher (p = .041) following TDM. However, in children with low baseline SPPC scores, significant increases with large effect sizes were found for global self‐worth (p =