Abstract
The aim of this study was to analyze the differences in body composition and physical fitness according to the weight status (normoweight, overweight and obese) and the level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD; low, medium or high), in physically active children and adolescents. Furthermore, this study also analyzed the relationship between body composition and physical fitness with Body Mass Index (BMI), fat mass and the level of adherence to the MD. In total, 1676 participants aged 6–17 from different municipal sports schools participated in this cross-sectional study. Data on adherence to the MD (a KIDMED questionnaire), anthropometric measurements, body composition and physical fitness parameters (the 20-m shuttle run test and muscular strength) were collected. A total of 43.5% of the sample were presented as overweight and obese, and only 35.7% had high or optimal adherence to the MD. The results revealed that a normoweight status was associated with greater cardiorespiratory fitness (p < 0.05; ES: 0.50 to 0.67) and lower-body muscular strength (p < 0.05; ES: 0.58 to 1.10). The overweight group showed more significant results than the other groups in handgrip strength (p < 0.01). Greater adherence to the MD in this population indicated better physical fitness, but only in boys. It is concluded that normoweight status and optimal adherence to the MD in children and adolescents are associated with health benefits, which are significant in the body composition and the effect on physical fitness.
Highlights
The prevalence of overweightness and obesity in children and adolescents is a global public health problem [1,2]
This study analyzed the relationship between body composition and physical fitness with Body Mass Index (BMI), fat mass and the level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD)
This study suggests that weight status is a fundamental factor for health, which is significant in body composition variables as well as in the effect on physical fitness
Summary
The prevalence of overweightness and obesity in children and adolescents is a global public health problem [1,2]. In 2016, a total of 213 million people in this population were overweight, and the global rates of obesity in children and adolescents from 5 to 19 years of age have multiplied by 10 times worldwide. Obesity is one of the most serious non-communicable diseases (NCDs), classified as a chronic disease of a multifactorial origin [3]. These NCDs are the result of a combination of different factors, physiological, environmental, genetic and, behavioral, showing to be long-lasting over time [6]
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