Physical Activity And Fitness Related To Nutritional Status In Rural African School-aged Children From Mozambique

Abstract

PURPOSE: This study aimed to study the associations among nutritional status, physical activity and physical fitness in an African rural area METHODS: The sample consisted of 794 subjects (456 boys; 384 girls) aged 6-16 years from Calanga, a rural area from Mozambique. Anthropometry, biological maturation, physical fitness and physical activity were assessed using standard procedures. Blood, urine, and feces samples were obtained to determine parasites and immune-hematological parameters. According to WHO expert committee's cutoff values, subjects were classified in 5 nutritional groups: normal, stunted, wasted, stunted-wasted and overweight. RESULTS: Prevalence for boys and girls, respectively, in nutritional groups were: stunted (24.2%; 21.3%); wasted (11.4%; 7.0%); stunted-wasted (7.1%; 4.2%); overweight (1.6%; 2.5%). For physical fitness, differences among the nutritional groups were significant for sit-and-reach, standing long jump, handgrip and 1-mile run for both sexes, and curl-up and running speed for girls. No significant differences were found in physical activity among groups, as well as on parasites and immune-hematological parameters. CONCLUSIONS: Physical performance adjusted for body size, physical activity, parasites and immunological parameters were not different between normal and malnourished groups.