I've always known that regular physical exercise promotes physical and mental health in adults and children alike, but I was curious to know as to what are the direct benefits from exercise for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)? I did my research and found that physical activity has been shown to improve classroom behaviors and improve aspects of academic performance in neurotypical children.

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In one particular study, 229 children with ASD were split into three groups:

(a) exercise- intervention group

(b) control group from the same institution

(c) control group from another institution

 

The exercise program was performed at moderate intensity in a 30 min section twice a week for 48 weeks (about one year).

 

The results showed that the 48-week exercise-intervention group substantially decreased ASD social interaction problems, attention deficit, emotional reactivity, stereotypical verbal and motor behavior, and sleep disturbances.

 

In another study, 133 children and adults with various variants of ASD were offered structured physical activities either in an individual or a group context.

The results revealed an overall improvement score of 37.5% and that clearly, physical exercise yielded positive behavioural changes for these children.

The results do permit the conclusion that in terms of motor performance and social skills children and adults with ASD benefit most from individual exercise interventions.