INFLUENCE OF SEROLOGICAL MARKERS OF BLOOD GROUPS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF MAIN MENTAL FUNCTIONS OF YOUNG ATHLETES (Dedicated to the memory of Professor Leonid Sergiyenko)

Abstract

The influence of serological markers of blood groups on the development of basic mental functions (attention, perception, thinking) of young athletes aged 13–16 years has been researched in this article. From the available literature sources it was found that for the effective performance by athletes of long and sufficiently intense physical and, in some cases, mental loads, one of the necessary conditions for their training and competitive activities are basic mental processes, including attention, perception, thinking, memory. The aim of the work is to analyze and summarize the data of our multi - year research of the influence of serological markers of blood groups of the ABO system on the development of basic mental functions of adolescent athletes who specialize in various sports. The study involved adolescent athletes of a specialized sports institution (Brovary Higher School of Physical Culture) (n=139), which according to the classification of sports by A. Dembo (1980) were divided into two groups: group A – speed and power sports (n=74); group B – endurance sports (n = 65). The control group consisted of students aged 13–16 (n=106) of secondary schools who did not play sports. The study of mental functions was conducted according to generally accepted and scientifically grounded methods. As a result of the conducted research the fact of possible use of blood groups in genetic forecasting of development of attention, perception of time and logical thinking of student's youth has been established.