Abstract
BackgroundOutdoor play, sedentary behavior (SB), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) are related to youth’s health, however, there are research gaps regarding 1) associations between outdoor play, SB, and MVPA across a broad pediatric age range (6–17 years), and 2) longitudinal associations between outdoor play, SB, and MVPA across childhood and adolescence. Two studies were conducted to address those research gaps: Study 1 aimed to investigate relationships between outdoor play and accelerometer-assessed SB and MVPA in a cross-sectional nationwide sample of children and adolescents in Germany. Study 2 aimed to investigate prospective associations between outdoor play and self-reported screen-time SB and MVPA and in a sample of children with three measurement timepoints across 11 years.MethodsData were obtained of the German national representative Motorik-Modul (MoMo) Study and the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS). In Study 1, N = 2278 participants (6–17 years) were included with self-reported outdoor play and accelerometer-assessed SB and MVPA. Associations were examined via multiple linear regressions. In Study 2, N = 570 participants (baseline: 4–7 years) were included in the longitudinal analysis with follow-ups six and 11 years later. Screen-time SB (TV watching and PC/Gaming), MVPA, and outdoor play were self-reported. Associations were investigated through a path prediction model.ResultsStudy 1 showed that compared to <1 h outdoor play, higher engagement in daily outdoor play was related to lower SB (1-2 h: − 9.75 min/day, P = 0.017; ≥2 h: − 17.78 min/day, P < 0.001) and higher MVPA (≥2 h: + 3.87 min/day, P = 0.001). The cross-sectional relationship between MVPA and outdoor play was moderated by sex (in favor of males) and age (in favor of younger children). Study 2 showed that outdoor play in early childhood negatively predicted PC use/Gaming in later childhood, but was unrelated to MVPA.ConclusionIn Study 1, outdoor play was negatively related to SB cross-sectionally. In Study 2, outdoor play in early childhood was negatively related to PC and Gaming time in later childhood. Thus, providing outdoor play opportunities, especially during early childhood, has potential to prevent SB. Future research should investigate longitudinal relationships using device-based assessments for SB and MVPA.
Highlights
Outdoor play, sedentary behavior (SB), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) are related to youth’s health, there are research gaps regarding 1) associations between outdoor play, SB, and MVPA across a broad pediatric age range (6–17 years), and 2) longitudinal associations between outdoor play, SB, and MVPA across childhood and adolescence
Sedentary behavior describes any behavior in a sitting or declined position requiring less than 1.5 metabolic equivalents [6], and physical activity describes any skeletal muscle movement leading to energy expenditure [7]
Outdoor play is related to several health benefits, across the last two decades, older children and adolescents in Germany decreased outdoor play: Between 2003 and 2006, 62% of children (11–13 years) and 37.2% of adolescents (14–17 years) engaged in more than three days outdoor play per week, between 2014 and 2017, this decreased to 50.1% and 14.6%, respectively, with similar trends for boys and girls [16], whereas outdoor play remained stable in children between four and ten years with
Summary
Sedentary behavior (SB), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) are related to youth’s health, there are research gaps regarding 1) associations between outdoor play, SB, and MVPA across a broad pediatric age range (6–17 years), and 2) longitudinal associations between outdoor play, SB, and MVPA across childhood and adolescence. Study 2 aimed to investigate prospective associations between outdoor play and self-reported screen-time SB and MVPA and in a sample of children with three measurement timepoints across 11 years. The World Health Organization recommends limiting sedentary behavior, screen-time sedentary behavior, in children and adolescents, and recommends that children and adolescents engage on average in at least 60 min moderate-to-vigorous physical activity a day across the week [8]. In the Canadian Health Behaviour of School Children study with youth aged 11–15 years, more than 30 min outdoor play were related to a 24% decrease in the prevalence of psychosomatic symptoms, including feeling low and nervous, sleep problems, and bad temper in females, while no significant associations were observed for males [15]. Outdoor play is related to several health benefits, across the last two decades, older children and adolescents in Germany decreased outdoor play: Between 2003 and 2006, 62% of children (11–13 years) and 37.2% of adolescents (14–17 years) engaged in more than three days outdoor play per week, between 2014 and 2017, this decreased to 50.1% and 14.6%, respectively, with similar trends for boys and girls [16], whereas outdoor play remained stable in children between four and ten years with
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