Compliance with the 24-hour movement behavior guidelines and the impact of sleep methods among toddler, preschool, and school-aged children enrolled in the Guelph Family Health Study

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Canadian movement guidelines focused on physical activity (PA), sleep, and screen time support childhood development and reduce the risk of chronic disease. Accelerometers are often used to capture these behaviors; however, they are limited in their ability to record daytime sleep due to potential misclassification. ObjectivesThe objectives of this study were to 1) determine the prevalence of children enrolled in the Guelph Family Health Study who met the guidelines and to 2) compare the impact of different sleep measurement methods. Design/methodsToddlers (1.5–<3 years; n = 128; valid data for all movement behaviors, n = 70), preschoolers (3–<5 years; n = 143; valid data for all movement behaviors, n = 104), and school-aged (5–<6 years; n = 49; valid data for all movement behaviors, n = 31) children were included. Screen time and sleep habits were obtained through parental report and published normative data. PA and sleep were recorded using accelerometers (wGT3X-BT ActiGraph; right hip). ResultsIt was found that 66 % of toddler, 44 % of preschool, and 63 % of school-aged children met the screen time guidelines. Further, 63 % of toddler, 98 % of preschooler, and 80 % of school-aged children met PA guidelines. Sleep guideline compliance ranged from 3 % to 83 % in toddler, 27 % to 92 % in preschooler, and 32 % to 90 % in school-aged children. These proportions were found to be significantly different (Cochran's Q and McNemar's tests). ConclusionsNearly all children met PA guidelines. In contrast, less than half to two-thirds met screen time guidelines. Compliance with sleep guidelines varied substantially with measurement method, highlighting the need for standardization.