4 Reasons Why Fidgeting Is Not So Bad (Based on Research)

“Sit straight” “Stop Shaking your legs” “Don’t Move Around SO much” “Where is your Focus”

“Concentrate” Well, these are few things that we “fidgeters”often hear.

We are a group of people that are constantly restless, but, not hyperactive. We have an excess of energy in our body, which does not allow us to stay established in a single place. We have an inbuilt tendency to explore and widen our understanding of any place we encounter upon, which is why we often stroll around and analyze different objects. And in our quest, we often come across people who are annoyed by our reconnoitre and try their level best to curb our inquisitiveness (In other words, stabilize/restrict our place of movement).

For the inhabitants of the earth who wonder why we are the way we are, and, for the inhabitants who wonder why we are who we are, here are few findings (which might help in a cordial existence of our species). ­ 

1. A study by Roland Rotz and Sarah D. Wright, authors of Fidget To Focus: Outwit Your Boredom: Sensory Strategies For Living With ADHD, quoted “If something we are engaged in is not interesting enough to sustain our focus, the additional sensory­motor input that is mildly stimulating, interesting, or entertaining allows our brains to become fully engaged and allows us to sustain focus on the primary activity in which we are participating.”
2. “Those of us who are more fidgety seem to have better long-term health outcomes,” said Janet Cade, professor of nutritional epidemiology at the University of Leeds. Writing in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, she found that women who sat for seven or more hours a day were 30% more likely to have died from any cause than those who sat for five or less hours, but only if they were low fidgeters. Those in the middle and high fidgeting groups had no greater risk of dying when they sat for the longer periods. ­
3. Research by Dr. Karen Pine and colleagues at the University of Hertfordshire funded by The Economic and Social Research Council found that children that were allowed to fidget with their hands performed better in memory and learning tests. 
4. Fidgeting is considered a nervous habit, though it does have some underlying benefits. People who fidget regularly tend to weigh less than people who do not fidget because they burn more calories than those who remain still. It has been reported that fidgeting burns around an extra 350 calories a day. 

So, maybe, fidgeting, is not so bad. And, maybe, we are NOT so Annoying.

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