Are children and adolescents less active if parents restrict their physical activity and active transport due to perceived risk?

Physical Activity From Transportation: New Insights and Lingering Questions

Physical Activity Measures in the Healthy Communities Study.

To describe active and sedentary time in children with spina bifida and to compare their physical activity on weekdays versus weekends. In this exploratory cross-sectional study, data from 13 Canadian and 22 Dutch children with spina bifida (14 females, 21 males; mean age 10y 11mo, standard deviation [SD] 3y 6mo, range 5y 6mo-18y; Hoffer classification distribution: community [n=28], household [n=3], non-functional [n=3], and non-ambulator [n=1]) were analysed. Objective measures of physical activity and sedentary behaviour were obtained by using ActiGraph or Actiheart activity monitors. Data for the participants wearing the ActiGraph were compared with age- and sex-matched controls that were developing typically using independent-samples t-tests. Activity data collected on weekdays was compared to those on weekends. ActiGraph data demonstrated children with spina bifida spent more time sedentary (mean [SD] 49.5min/h [5.78]) and less time in moderate to vigorous physical activity (mean [SD] 2.33min/h [1.61]) compared with the typically developing group (mean [SD] 41.0min/h [5.76] and 5.46min/h [2.13], p=0.001 and p<0.001 respectively). For both ActiGraph- and Actiheart-derived data, physical activity and sedentary time were not significantly different between weekdays and weekends. Children with spina bifida have reduced levels of physical activity and increased sedentary behaviour, with no statistical differences seen between weekdays and weekends. Several methodological issues related to activity monitoring warrant consideration when choosing the appropriate method to quantify physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Reduced levels of physical activity and sedentary time were quantified in children with spina bifida. Objective quantification of physical behaviour in ambulatory and non-ambulatory school-aged children with spina bifida is possible.

This study examined how objective measures of the local road environment related to safety were associated with change in physical activity (including active transport) among youth. Few longitudinal studies have examined the impact of the road environment on physical activity among children/adolescents in their neighborhoods. Participants were children aged 8-9 years (n = 170) and adolescents aged 13-15 years (n = 276) in 2004. Data were collected in 2004 and 2006 during follow-up of participants recruited initially in 2001 from 19 primary schools in Melbourne, Australia. Walking/cycling to local destinations was parent-reported for children and self-reported by adolescents. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) during nonschool hours was recorded using accelerometers. Road environment features in each participant's neighborhood (area within 800 m radius of their home) were measured objectively using a Geographical Information System. Linear regression analyses examined associations between road features and changes in active transport (AT) and MVPA over 2 years. Children's AT increased but MVPA levels decreased in both age groups; on average, younger girls recorded the greatest declines. The number of traffic/pedestrian lights was associated with DeltaAT among younger girls (B=0.45, p=0.004). The total length of walking tracks (in meters) was associated with AT among younger girls (B = 0.0016, p = 0.015) and adolescent girls (B = 0.0016, p = 0.002). For adolescent boys, intersection density was associated with AT (B = 0.03, p = 0.030). Slow points were associated with MVPA among younger boys before school (B = 1.55, p = 0.021), while speed humps were associated with MVPA among adolescent boys after school (B = 0.23, p = 0.015). There were many associations for adolescent girls: for example, the total length of local roads (B = 0.49, p = 0.005), intersection density (B = 0.05, p = 0.036), and number of speed humps (B = 0.33, p = 0.020) were associated with MVPA during nonschool hours. Safety-related aspects of the built environment are conducive to physical activity among youth and may help stem age-related declines in physical activity. Passive road safety interventions may promote AT and physical activity among less active girls, in particular.

Features of the built environment that may influence physical activity (PA) levels are commonly captured using a so-called walkability index. Since such indices typically describe opportunities for walking in everyday life of adults, they might not be applicable to assess urban opportunities for PA in children. Particularly, the spatial availability of recreational facilities may have an impact on PA in children and should be additionally considered. We linked individual data of 400 2- to 9-year-old children recruited in the European IDEFICS study to geographic data of one German study region, based on individual network-dependent neighborhoods. Environmental features of the walkability concept and the availability of recreational facilities, i.e. playgrounds, green spaces, and parks, were measured. Relevant features were combined to a moveability index that should capture urban opportunities for PA in children. A gamma log-regression model was used to model linear and non-linear effects of individual variables on accelerometer-based moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) stratified by pre-school children (<6 years) and school children (≥6 years). Single environmental features and the resulting indices were separately included into the model to investigate the effect of each variable on MVPA. In school children, commonly used features such as residential density [Formula: see text], intersection density [Formula: see text], and public transit density [Formula: see text] showed a positive effect on MVPA, while land use mix revealed a negative effect on MVPA [Formula: see text]. In particular, playground density [Formula: see text] and density of public open spaces, i.e., playgrounds and parks combined [Formula: see text], showed positive effects on MVPA. However, availability of green spaces showed no effect on MVPA. Different moveability indices were constructed based on the walkability index accounting for the negative impact of land use mix. Moveability indices showed also strong effects on MVPA in school children for both components, expanded by playground density [Formula: see text] or by public open space density [Formula: see text], but no effects of urban measures and moveability indices were found in pre-school children. The final moveability indices capture relevant opportunities for PA in school children. Particularly, availability of public open spaces seems to be a strong predictor of MVPA. Future studies involving children should consider quantitative assessment of public recreational facilities in larger cities or urban sprawls in order to investigate the influence of the moveability on childhood PA in a broader sample.

Extreme heat may discourage physical activity of children while shade may provide thermal comfort. The authors determined the associations between ambient temperature, shade, and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) of children during school recess. Children aged 8-10 (n = 213) wore accelerometers and global positioning system monitors during recess at 3 school parks in Austin, Texas (September-November 2019). Weather data originated from 10 sensors per park. The authors calculated shade from imagery using a geographic information system (GIS) and time-matched physical activity, location, temperature, and shade data. The authors specified piecewise multilevel regression to assess relations between average temperature and percentage of recess time in MVPA and shade. Temperature ranged 11 °C to 35 °C. Each 1 °C higher temperature was associated with a 0.7 percentage point lower time spent in MVPA, until 33 °C (91 °F) when the association changed to a 1.5 lower time (P < .01). Each 1 °C higher temperature was associated with a 0.3 percentage point higher time spent under shade, until 33 °C when the association changed to a 3.4 higher time (P < .001). At 33 °C or above, the direct association between shade and MVPA weakened (P < .05), with no interaction effect above 33 °C (P > .05). Children at the park with the most tree canopy spent 6.0 percentage points more time in MVPA (P < .01). Children engage in less MVPA and seek shade during extreme heat and engage in more MVPA in green schoolyards. With climate change, schools should consider interventions (eg,organizing shaded play, tree planting) to promote heat safe MVPA.

BackgroundBest-practice early interventions to increase physical activity (PA) in children with overweight and obesity should be both feasible and evidence based. Walking is a basic human movement pattern that is practical, cost-effective, and does not require complex movement skills. However, there is still a need to investigate how much walking—as a proportion of total PA level—is performed by children who are overweight and obese in order to determine its utility as a public health strategy.ObjectiveThis study aimed to (1) investigate the proportion of overall PA indicators that are explained by step-based metrics and (2) study step accumulation patterns relative to achievement of public health recommendations in children who are overweight and obese.MethodsA total of 105 overweight and obese children (mean 10.1 years of age [SD 1.1]; 43 girls) wore hip-worn accelerometers for 7 days. PA volumes were derived using the daily average of counts per 15 seconds, categorized using standard cut points for light-moderate-vigorous PA (LMVPA) and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA). Derived step-based metrics included volume (steps/day), time in cadence bands, and peak 1-minute, 30-minute, and 60-minute cadences.ResultsSteps per day explained 66%, 40%, and 74% of variance for counts per 15 seconds, LMVPA, and MVPA, respectively. The variance explained was increased up to 80%, 92%, and 77% by including specific cadence bands and peak cadences. Children meeting the World Health Organization recommendation of 60 minutes per day of MVPA spent less time at zero cadence and more time in cadence bands representing sporadic movement to brisk walking (ie, 20-119 steps/min) than their less-active peers.ConclusionsStep-based metrics, including steps per day and various cadence-based metrics, seem to capture a large proportion of PA for children who are overweight and obese. Given the availability of pedometers, step-based metrics could be useful in discriminating between those children who do or do not achieve MVPA recommendations.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT02295072; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02295072

An increasing number of children fail to meet the recommended levels of physical activity. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of peer presence on variables that have been shown to evoke moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in children. We recorded the levels of MVPA in three preschool children across no adult, attention, and interactive play conditions, with a peer present and absent. All conditions were compared with a naturalistic baseline and presented in a multielement design with a brief reversal to baseline and reintroduction of the most effective condition. All three participants displayed most MVPA during the interactive play condition with a peer present. This study furthers research on the identification of variables that evoke MVPA in young children and emphasizes the interaction of peer presence and contingent social positive reinforcement as relevant variables.

Physical activity is important for children's health, but moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) declines with age. COVID-19 lockdowns resulted in reduced MVPA and increased sedentary time among children. Characterising children's activity patterns may help identify groups who are most likely to be inactive post-lockdown. Data were combined from a pre-COVID-19 cohort study on children aged 5-6 years (Year1: n = 1299), 8-9 years (Year4: n = 1223) and 10-11 years (Year6: n = 1296) and cross-sectional post-lockdown data from a natural experiment on 10-11-year-olds in 2021 (Year6-W1: n = 393) and 2022 (Year6-W2: n = 436). The proportions of time spent in MVPA, light physical activity (LPA) and sedentary time on weekdays and weekends were derived from accelerometer data. Latent class analysis was used to identify activity profiles pre and post-lockdown, and estimate pre-COVID-19 transitions between Year4 and Year6. We identified six pre-COVID-19 activity profiles in Year6, including a new profile characterised by very low MVPA and high sedentary time (19% of children). There was substantial movement between profiles at Year4 and Year6, with 45% moving to a profile with lower MVPA. Likelihood ratio tests suggested differences in Year6 activity profiles pre and post-lockdown, with a new post-lockdown profile emerging characterised by higher LPA. The percentage of children in the least active profiles (where under 20% meet UK physical activity guidelines), rose post-lockdown, from 34% pre-COVID-19 to 50% in 2021 and 40% in 2022. We also saw gender and socioeconomic gaps widen, and increased separation between high and low physical activity levels. Children's physical activity has changed post-COVID-19, in terms of who is being active and how. The impact varies by activity profile, which is influenced by gender and socio-economic position. A greater understanding of these differences and targeting of low active groups is needed to increase both individual and population levels of physical activity.

Background/Purpose: Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) is a specific motor function developmental disorder. Motor performance and motor learning in children with DCD lag behind that of typically developing (TD) children. Research has shown that motor competence (MC) in childhood can predict future physical activity (PA). However, there is controversy about the level of PA in early childhood with DCD, and it is not clear whether MC can predict PA. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare the differences between MC and PA of 3-6 year old DCD children and TD children, and to explore the relationship between MC and PA of DCD children. Methods: A total of 90 children aged 3-6 with DCD in a hospital were selected, and 90 children with TD were selected as the control group using gender and age as matching factors. The MC of children were assessed using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children and the Test of Gross Motor Development; PA of children was investigated using the Questionnaire of Parents of Physical Activities of Young Children. Independent samples t-tests and nonparametric tests were used to compare the MC and PA of DCD children and TD children, respectively; partial correlation and linear regression were used to explore the relationship between MC and PA in children with DCD. Results: The scores of manual dexterities, aiming and catching, body balance ability, and locomotor skills in DCD children were lower than those in TD children (P &lt; 0.05). There was no difference between DCD children and TD children in total PA and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) outside school (P &gt; 0.05); DCD children's manual dexterity and locomotor skills were positively correlated with weekend MVPA (r = 0.237, 0.260, P &lt; 0.05), aiming and catching were positively correlated with MVPA outside school on weekdays (r = 0.274, P = 0.010); locomotor skills (β = 0.264, P = 0.038), aiming and catching (β = 0.287, P = 0.010) had predictive effects on MVPA on weekends and outside school on weekdays, respectively. Conclusion/Discussion: The DCD children exhibited lower MC compared to the TD children, yet their levels of PA were like those of the TD children, indicating that a deficit in PA does not seem to exist in early childhood. In addition, aiming, catching, and locomotor skills of children with DCD can promote PA. This indicates that the early intervention of DCD should be based on the development of MC, and a personalized intervention plan should be developed to promote the healthy growth of DCD.

Physical activity is an important health-related behavior, but the environmental variables that promote or abate it are not well understood. The purpose of this study was to conduct a functional analysis evaluating the effect of the physical environment on moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in preschool children, and to evaluate the utility of the methodology across different group compositions. The Observational System for Recording Physical Activity in Children was used to define the test conditions and the measures of physical activity for eight preschool children. The functional analysis was implemented according to a multi-element experimental design. The highest levels of MVPA were observed when fixed playground equipment was available and at least one peer was present. Moreover, differential responding was observed across group compositions. The implications of this methodology and these findings on the development of interventions to increase MVPA are discussed.

BackgroundAs few longitudinal studies have examined how active transport is associated with physical activity among children and adolescents over time, and how active transport tracks through childhood and adolescence, it is important to understand whether physically active children retain their activity patterns through adolescence. This study aimed to examine (a) tracking of active transport and of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) across childhood and adolescence in two age cohorts; and (b) associations between active transport and MVPA at three distinct time-points, over five years.MethodsThis longitudinal study of two cohorts aged 5-6 years (n = 134) and 10-12 years (n = 201) at baseline (T1), in Melbourne, Australia, gathered follow-up data at three (T2) and five years (T3). Walking/cycling to local destinations was survey-reported; while MVPA was recorded using accelerometers and mean time spent daily in MVPA on week days and on weekends was computed. Tracking of these behaviours was examined over five years using General Estimating Equations. Linear regression analyses were performed to examine associations between active transport and MVPA at each time-point.ResultsActive transport tracked moderately among children (boys, βs = 0.36; girls, βs = 0.51) but not among adolescents. Physical activity tracked moderately (βs value range: 0.33-0.55) for both cohorts. Active transport was not associated with children's MVPA at any time-point, but was associated with adolescent boys' MVPA on week days at T1 (B = 1.37 (95% CI: 0.15, 2.59)), at T2 (B = 1.27 (95% CI: 0.03, 2.51)) and at T3 (B = 0.74 (95% CI: 0.01, 1.47)), and with adolescent girls' MVPA on week days (B = 0.40 (95% CI: 0.04, 0.76)) and on weekends (B = 0.54 (95% CI: 0.16, 0.93)) at T3 only.ConclusionActive transport was associated only with boys' MVPA during early adolescence and with boys' and girls' MVPA during late adolescence. While active transport should be encouraged among all school-aged children, it may provide an important source of habitual physical activity for adolescent girls, in particular, among whom low and declining physical activity levels have been reported world-wide.

Neighborhood environment influences may be particularly important for understanding physical activity (PA) patterns across ethnic subgroups of early adolescent girls. This study examined relationships between neighborhood variables, moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), and active transportation to/from school across African American, Latino American, and White early adolescent girls living in an urban/suburban community in the northwestern U.S.A. Relations between the neighborhood variables across ethnic groups also were examined. The sample comprised 372 African American, Latino American, and White girls living in the U.S.A. (mean age = 12.06 years; SD = 1.69). Data were analyzed using multiple-sample structural equation modeling. Results showed that girls' MVPA was positively related to physical activity facility accessibility and negatively related to age. Active transport was positively related to physical activity facility accessibility, neighborhood walkability, and age, and negatively related to distance to the nearest school and household income. Findings highlight the importance of both perceived and objective neighborhood influences on girls' MVPA and active transport. Consistencies in findings across African American, Latino American, and White girls suggest that neighborhood-level PA promotion has the potential for broad impact across all three ethnic groups.

Little is known about the extent that different domains contribute to total sedentary (SED), light (LPA) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). We aimed to identify domain-specific physical activity (PA) patterns in school-aged children who were assessed by questionnaire and accelerometry. For the study, 298 German school children and adolescents aged 6–17 years wore an accelerometer for one week and completed a PA recall-questionnaire for the same period. Spearman coefficients (r) were used to evaluate the agreement between self-reported and objectively measured PA in five domains (transport, school hours, physical education, leisure-time, organized sports activities). School hours mainly contributed to the total objectively measured SED, LPA and MVPA (55%, 53% and 46%, respectively), whilst sports activities contributed only 24% to total MVPA. Compared to accelerometry, the proportion of self-reported LPA and MVPA during school hours was substantially underestimated but overestimated during leisure-time. The agreement of self-reported and objectively measured PA was low for total LPA (r = 0.09, 95% CI (confidence interval): −0.03–0.20) and total MVPA (r = 0.21, 95% CI: 0.10–0.32), while moderate agreement was only found for total SED (r = 0.44, 95% CI: 0.34–0.53), LPA during transport (r = 0.59; 95% CI: 0.49–0.67) and MVPA during organized sports activities (r = 0.54; 95% CI: 0.38–0.67). Since school hours mainly contribute to total SED, LPA and MVPA and self-reported LPA and MVPA during school were importantly underestimated compared to objectively measured LPA and MVPA, the application of objective measurements is compulsory to characterize the entire activity pattern of school-aged children.

Background The Daily Mile (TDM) is among the most popular school-based running programmes recommended globally by governments and the WHO to meet the shortfalls in children's physical activity. In England, it has been adopted by 1 in 5 primary schools. However, its impact on children's physical activity has not been assessed at scale. We aimed to compare a)minutes (mins) of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in and outside school hours and b)meeting physical activity guidelines in primary school children in England, comparing those in schools registered with TDM with those that were not. Methods This was a cross-sectional study. We used self-reported data of 49,561 English primary school children(5-11 years) from the Active Lives Children and Young People Survey and TDM registration data of their school. We compared mins of MVPA in and outside school hours between children in TDM-registered and non-registered schools using a multilevel zero-inflated negative binomial model; and the differences in the likelihood of meeting physical activity guidelines based on TDM registration with a multilevel logistic regression model. All models included a random effect for school and adjusted for potential confounders. Results Children attending TDM-registered schools reported an extra 36 mins of MVPA a week overall, including 10 additional mins (95%CI:3,16) MVPA/week during school hours and 26 additional (95%CI:4,44) mins MVPA/week outside school hours. Children in TDM-registered schools were 6% more likely to meet physical activity guidelines compared to those who were not(RR:1.06 (95%CI:1.02,1.11)). Conclusions Children in primary schools registered to TDM report more physical activity that is not compensated for outside school hours. However, the absolute differences fall considerably short of international guidelines across the whole child population. Therefore, a whole school and systems-based approach is required, embedding school-based running programmes. Key messages Children in schools registered to TDM report more MVPA overall, inside, and outside school hours; suggesting no compensation of activity in those who are registered. TDM is a potential solution to increase children’s physical activity during the school day.