A toddler swimming lesson has helped him develop the skills to stay on his feet when he’s on the move, a pediatrician says.
A new study released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that the children of mothers who took their toddler swimming lessons regularly had fewer strokes, lower blood pressure and lower heart rate than children who did not.
Children who were exposed to swimming lessons were also more likely to have a better grip and feel better in their arms.
Dr. Sarah Tishler, a family medicine physician at Mount Sinai Hospital, says that the benefits of the classes are clear.
“This study is really a validation of the effectiveness of swimming lessons,” Tishlers study co-author, Dr. Sarah McPherson, said in a news release.
“There is no doubt that if a child can learn to swim and stay on their feet, he or she can become a much healthier individual.”
In this picture provided by the CDC, a baby’s head is seen in this undated family photo.
The study, which was released Thursday, was conducted in New York City.
The researchers followed about 2,500 toddlers, ages 4 to 6, who were part of the program for the past five years.
“They were tested twice in the summer and again in the winter,” Tishes study coauthor Dr. Karen Dennison told ABC News.
“It’s important to note that the study does not control for any of the potential confounders that could come with any treatment, like stress or illness.”
However, our study shows that kids who have been swimming lessons have lower blood pressures, lower heart rates and lower strokes,” she added.
Children in the study who had swimming lessons at least once a week had a 27 percent lower risk of having a stroke than children whose mothers didn’t take the class.”
The study shows these benefits are lasting,” Dennisons said.”
If you take a look at this data, it really is very, very important to have kids with the right tools in their hands and it’s really beneficial to the child,” she said.
The CDC’s Dr. William Schaffner says that there are no definitive studies on the safety of swimming or other types of swimming.
But, he said, he believes that the lessons can be a powerful tool to help kids learn how to swim.”
We need to encourage them to do it in the right way, and I think this study really shows that they can be very effective,” he told ABCNews.com.”
Children are really, really good at understanding how to control their body weight, they’re really good about learning how to use the muscles of the body and that’s really important.
So it’s a really good way to help a child learn how they can control their weight and how to learn how the muscles work,” Schaffners added.
Dr Dennson, who is also a member of the National Academy of Pediatrics, said that it’s important for parents to remember that children are not always the smartest at things.”
What we want to be clear about is that children don’t know everything,” she told ABCNEWS.com, adding that they are “not necessarily smart or the most clever, but they do know what they know.
“Dr. Tishley agrees, adding, “This study really tells us that it doesn’t matter how smart they are, what they do in life.
They’re all just kids and it is important to recognize that.