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Weight status and gender-related differences in motor skills and in child care - based physical activity in young children.

ABSTRACT: Over the last decades, a decline in motor skills and in physical activity and an increase in obesity has been observed in children. However, there is a lack of data in young children. We tested if differences in motor skills and in physical activity according to weight or gender were already present in 2- to 4-year-old children.Fifty-eight child care centers in the French part of Switzerland were randomly selected for the Youp'là bouge study. Motor skills were assessed by an obstacle course including 5 motor skills, derived from the Zurich Neuromotor Assessment test. Physical activity was measured with accelerometers (GT1M, Actigraph, Florida, USA) using age-adapted cut-offs. Weight status was assessed using the International Obesity Task Force criteria (healthy weight vs overweight) for body mass index (BMI).Of the 529 children (49% girls, 3.4 ± 0.6 years, BMI 16.2 ± 1.2 kg/m2), 13% were overweight. There were no significant weight status-related differences in the single skills of the obstacle course, but there was a trend (p = 0.059) for a lower performance of overweight children in the overall motor skills score. No significant weight status-related differences in child care-based physical activity were observed. No gender-related differences were found in the overall motor skills score, but boys performed better than girls in 2 of the 5 motor skills (p ? 0.04). Total physical activity as well as time spent in moderate-vigorous and in vigorous activity during child care were 12-25% higher and sedentary activity 5% lower in boys compared to girls (all p < 0.01).At this early age, there were no significant weight status- or gender-related differences in global motor skills. However, in accordance to data in older children, child care-based physical activity was higher in boys compared to girls. These results are important to consider when establishing physical activity recommendations or targeting health promotion interventions in young children.

SUBMITTER: Bonvin A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3324371 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Weight status and gender-related differences in motor skills and in child care - based physical activity in young children.

Bonvin Antoine A Barral Jérôme J Kakebeeke Tanja H TH Kriemler Susi S Longchamp Anouk A Marques-Vidal Pedro P Puder Jardena J JJ

BMC pediatrics 20120309

<h4>Background</h4>Over the last decades, a decline in motor skills and in physical activity and an increase in obesity has been observed in children. However, there is a lack of data in young children. We tested if differences in motor skills and in physical activity according to weight or gender were already present in 2- to 4-year-old children.<h4>Methods</h4>Fifty-eight child care centers in the French part of Switzerland were randomly selected for the Youp'là bouge study. Motor skills were ...[more]

PMID: 22405468

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Project description:Preschool children are recommended to participate in a minimum of 180-min physical activity (PA) per day to enhance their development and overall health. Low PA and increased obesity are thought to be linked to low mastery of fundamental movement skills (FMS) in preschool children. This study sought to investigate whether FMS influences PA levels and weight status in preschool children, in an area of low socioeconomic status. Secondary aims of this study were to determine whether gender or day of the week affected the primary outcomes. One hundred eighty-five preschool children aged 3-4 years old, participated in the study. FMS proficiency was determined using the Test of Gross Motor Development-2. PA was determined using triaxial accelerometry over a 4-day period. None of the samples met the recommended 180 min of PA. There were no significant differences in PA or weight status between preschool children with high, medium or low FMS mastery (P?<?0.05). There were also no significant correlations between overall FMS and moderate to vigorous PA during the week or weekend days.Conclusion: Girls scored significantly greater at the hop, leap, and skip (locomotor skills) and the boys significantly higher at the kick (object control) (P?<?0.05). There were no significant differences in PA or weight status between preschool children with high, medium, or low FMS mastery, possibly because FMS mastery had not developed to a high enough level to affect PA and FMS are considered independent of physical fitness and physical features, such as weight and height. What is Known: •FMS are commonly developed in early childhood, providing the building blocks for future motor skills, good health and lifelong PA. •No study to date has measured FMS, PA levels and weight status in preschool children, to determine whether FMS competency influences PA levels and weight status in preschool children, in an area of low SES. What is New: •FMS competency did not appear to influence the level of PA or weight status in this sample of UK preschool children from a low SES area. •PA and FMS may not be fully established and consequently not strongly linked at the ages of 3-4 years, therefore, the preschool years could be influential in providing a window to maximise input of good/optimal development of motor competence before the proficiency barrier sets in and we need remedial intervention.

Project description:Many studies reported a positive relationship between motor skills, cognitive functions, and school performance in school-age children; however, little is known in preschool children. The aim of the present study was to demonstrate the effectiveness of a physical education program (PEP) on locomotor, object control skills, and pre-literacy cognitive functions in a wide population of preschoolers and verify whether weight status could influence these abilities. In the context of the Training-to-Health Project, a sample of 1,029 preschoolers was recruited in kindergartens from the urban area of Palermo (Italy). Their gross motor and pre-literacy skills were tested before (PRE) and after (POST) following 16 weeks (2 h/week) of a PEP, which included ludic-motor activities aimed at developing body awareness and fundamental motor and perceptual-sensory skills. Analyses of variance (ANOVA) were performed to assess the skills before and after the intervention and to evaluate the effect of different categories of weight status on the examined variables. Regression analyses were conducted to confirm the hypothesized interrelationship between motor and pre-literacy skills in the considered sample. Both locomotor/object control and pre-literacy skills were significantly higher in children after the PEP (p < 0.05). We found 23% of overweight children and no significant difference between weight status classes in both PRE and POST PEP groups. In the POST group, higher locomotor and object control skills were mostly associated with better pre-literacy skills. This study shows that PEP was effective in improving both motor and pre-literacy skills in preschoolers independently from age and gender, while weight status did not affect these skills suggesting that this program can be administrated indifferently in children with different categories of weight status. Therefore, PEP could be a decisive education strategy to enhance motor and cognitive learning in preschool children and to achieve successful academic outcomes.

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Weight status and gender-related differences in motor skills and in child care - based physical activity in young children.

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Weight status and gender-related differences in motor skills and in child care - based physical activity in young children.

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