SynthesisBritish journal of sports medicine2025
Cardiorespiratory fitness and health in children and adolescents: an overview of systematic reviews with meta-analyses representing over 125 000 observations covering 33 health-related outcomes.
Synthesis in British journal of sports medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Diagnostic and Prognostic Accuracy of Cardiorespiratory Fitness for Detecting Cardiovascular Risk and Mitochondrial Disorders: An Overview of Systematic Reviews with Meta-Analyses.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Pooled it
- Parkinson's disease, aerobic exercise and photobiomodulation: a randomised controlled trial.Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996) · 2026Trial
- Reliability and validity of the International FItness Scale (IFIS): A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of exercise science and fitness · 2026Review
- Dose-response association between different screen time behaviors and cardiorespiratory fitness among elementary and junior high school students: A population-based cross-sectional study in a Japanese city.Journal of exercise science and fitness · 2026Article
- Associations Among Diet Quality, Motor Competence, and Physical Fitness in Preschool Children: A Cross-Sectional Study.Nutrients · 2026Article
- Associations of Physical Fitness and Postural Balance with Psychosocial Well-Being in Early Adolescents: A School-Based Cross-Sectional Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Physical Fitness Profiles Among Children and Adolescents With ADHD and ASD: A Comparison With Typically Developing Peers.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research · 2026Article
- School based physical fitness testing: challenges and opportunities.Pediatric research · 2026Article
- Physical Fitness Cut-Points for Early Detection of Obesity Risk in Preschool Children.Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) · 2026Article
- Associations of 24-H Movement Behavior Composition with Estimated Cardiorespiratory Fitness in School-Aged Children: A Compositional Data Analysis.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- The associations between speed performance and health outcomes in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of exercise science and fitness · 2026Review
- Physical Literacy-Focused Education Improves Fitness Markers in Preadolescents: Implications for School-Based Health Promotion.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Obesity and Resting Metabolic Rate Assessed by Indirect Calorimetry in Pediatric Patients from Northeastern Romania.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Comparison of a 36-week functional training program versus traditional physical education on physical fitness in male adolescents: a longitudinal school-based study.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Cardiopulmonary Benefits of Exercise in Adolescents.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026Review
- Direction of Change in Cardiorespiratory Fitness in School-Age Children: A Longitudinal Single-Centre Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo synthesise data on the associations between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and health in children and adolescents, evaluate the certainty of evidence and identify knowledge gaps.
designAn overview of systematic reviews with meta-analyses. Results were pooled using forest plots and certainty of evidence evaluated with GRADE. DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, Scopus, CINAHL and SPORTDiscus were searched from January 2002 to March 2024. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SELECTED STUDIES: Systematic reviews with meta-analyses exploring CRF and health in children and adolescents aged <18 years.
resultsFrom the 9062 records identified, 14 reviews were included. Meta-analysed data from 125 164 observations covering 33 health outcomes were compiled, showing favourable (n=26) or null (n=7) associations with CRF. Among general populations, the associations were weak-to-moderate, with favourable links between CRF and indicators of anthropometry and adiposity, cardiometabolic and vascular health, and mental health and well-being. Among clinical populations, CRF was lower in participants with a condition compared with healthy controls, with the largest difference for newly diagnosed cancer (mean difference=-19.6 mL/kg/min; 95%CI: -21.4,-17.8). Patients with cystic fibrosis had a greater risk for all-cause mortality when comparing low CRF vs. high (relative risk=4.9; 95%CI: 1.1, 22.1). The certainty of evidence ranged from very low to moderate.
conclusionCRF shows promising links to numerous health outcomes in paediatric populations, though the low certainty of evidence calls for further research. High-quality longitudinal evidence is warranted to confirm the findings and investigate a predictive role of childhood CRF for future health.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.