A new study released in the Journal of Intellectual Disability Research looks at levels of physical activity in parents of children with and without Down syndrome.
“Emerging evidence suggests that parents of children with intellectual disabilities have poorer physical health than parents of typically developing children.”
Researchers looked at surveys from 2005–2016 where parents in the U.S. were asked how much of their leisure time (minutes per week) was spent doing some time of physical activity.
Conclusion
Parents of children with Down syndrome are more likely to be physically inactive compared with parents of typically developing children and parents of children with other developmental disabilities or special health care needs. These findings suggest that parents of children with Down syndrome are a population in urgent need for interventions/programmes that promote physical activity, particularly as child well‐being is linked to caregiver health.
Sounds like we, as a community, should be supporting each other by encouraging some type of physical activity. We owe it to ourselves and our children.
Any good ideas?
What type of exercise do you do?