Do children like walking? Children in the city of Dunedin, New Zealand

2008 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 13-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Quigg ◽  
Claire Freeman

There is rising interest in children's activity levels and the relationship between health, physical activity and their environments – in particular, their ‘obesogenic’ environments. This paper presents the results of a qualitative study of 71 school children in Dunedin, New Zealand, the purpose of which was to discover whether they liked walking. The study found that, whilst many children do like walking, they are not permitted to walk much, nor to many places. Some walk to school, but their overall levels of walking are low due to a combination of factors relating to concerns for their safety and to the need for children to fit in with increasingly complex, car-dependent family lives.

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1229
Author(s):  
Jose Luis Perez-Lasierra ◽  
Martin Laclaustra ◽  
Pilar Guallar-Castillón ◽  
Jose Antonio Casasnovas ◽  
Jose Antonio Casajús ◽  
...  

Sedentarism is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), but currently it is not clear how a sedentary behavior such as long sitting time can affect atherosclerosis development. This study examined the relationship between sitting time and the prevalence of carotid and femoral subclinical atherosclerosis. A cross-sectional analysis based on a subsample of 2082 participants belonging to the Aragon Workers’ Health Study was carried out. Ultrasonography was used to assess the presence of plaques in carotid and femoral territories; the validated Spanish version of the questionnaire on the frequency of engaging in physical activity used in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals’ was used to assess physical activity and sitting time; and demographic, anthropometric, and clinical data were obtained by trained personnel during the annual medical examination. Participants were categorized into <9 h/day and ≥9 h/day sitting time groups. After adjusting for several confounders, compared with participants that remain seated <9 h/day, those participants who remain seated ≥9 h/day had, respectively, OR = 1.25 (95%CI: 1.01, 1.55, p < 0.05) and OR = 1.38 (95%CI: 1.09, 1.74, p < 0.05) for carotid and any-territory plaque presence. Remaining seated ≥9 h/day is associated with higher odds for carotid and any-territory plaque presence independently of physical activity levels and other cardiovascular risk factors.


1993 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 357-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hazzaa M. Al-Hazzaa ◽  
Mohammed A. Sulaiman

The present study examined the relationship between maximal oxygen uptake (V̇O2max) and daily physical activity in a group of 7- to 12-year-old boys. V̇O2max was assessed through the incremental treadmill test using an open circuit system. Physical activity level was obtained from heart rate telemetry outside of school time for 8 hrs during weekdays and during 40 min of physical education classes. The findings indicated that the absolute value of V̇O2max increased with age, while relative to body weight it remained almost the same across age, with a mean of 48.4 ml · kg−1 · min−1. Moreover, heart rate telemetry showed that the boys spent a limited amount of time on activities that raise the heart rate to a level above 160 bpm (an average of 1.9%). In addition, V̇O2max was found to be significantly related to the percentage of time spent at activity levels at or above a heart rate of 140 bpm, but not with activity levels at or above a heart rate of 160 bpm.


Author(s):  
Kathryn E. Wilson ◽  
Andrew Corbett ◽  
Andrew Van Horn ◽  
Diego Guevara Beltran ◽  
Jessica D. Ayers ◽  
...  

Background: Physical activity (PA) mitigated psychological distress during the initial weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic, yet not much is known about whether PA had effects on stress in subsequent months. We examined the relationship between change over time in COVID-related stress and self-reported change in PA between March and July 2020. Methods: Latent growth modeling was used to examine trajectories of change in pandemic-related stress and test their association with self-reported changes in PA in an international sample (n = 679). Results: The participants reported a reduction in pandemic-related stress between April and July of 2020. Significant linear (factor mean = −0.22) and quadratic (factor mean = 0.02) changes (Ps < .001) were observed, indicating a deceleration in stress reduction over time. Linear change was related to change in PA such that individuals who became less active during the pandemic reported less stress reduction over time compared with those who maintained or increased their PA during the pandemic. Conclusions: Individuals who experienced the greatest reduction in stress over time during the pandemic were those who maintained their activity levels or became more active. Our study cannot establish a causal relationship between these variables, but the findings are consistent with other work showing that PA reduces stress.


1982 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 240-243
Author(s):  
Wayne T. Corbett ◽  
Harry M. Schey ◽  
A. W. Green

The mean and standard deviation over 24 h for 3 groups of animals - active, intermediate and inactive - in physical activity units were 10948 ± 3360, 2611 ± 1973 and 484 ± 316 respectively. The differences were significant ( P = 0·004), demonstrating the ability of the method to distinguish between groups that can be visibly differentiated. The small within-animal physical activity standard deviation (18·85 PAU) obtained in another group, suggests that it also yields reliable physical activity measurements for non-human primates. The monitoring device used can discriminate between individual nonhuman primate physical activity levels in a free-living environment and does not alter daily behaviour. This makes possible the study of the relationship between physical activity and atherosclerosis in nonhuman primates.


2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (21_suppl) ◽  
pp. 38-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Hai Deng ◽  
Per Morten Fredriksen

Aims: The objective was to investigate moderate-to-vigorous physical activity levels (MVPA) of primary school children at baseline of the Health Oriented Pedagogical Project (HOPP), Norway. Methods: Data on 2123 children aged 6–12 years were included for analysis (75% participation rate). Average minutes per day in MVPA was objectively measured using accelerometry based on seven-day averages. The sample was analysed for age-, sex-, socioeconomic-, and season-related patterns. A linear regression investigated the moderating effect of these factors as well as body mass index and waist circumference. Results: Some 86.5% of the sample had at least 60 min/day MVPA, averaging 90.7 min/day. The main differences in daily averages were between age groups 6½–9 and 10–12 ( p < .05). Boys (95.8 min/day, 95% CI: 94.1–97.5) were more active than girls (85.6 min/day, 95% CI: 83.9–87.2) in all age groups ( p < .0001). MVPA was lower by 3.5 min ( p < .0001) per additional year of age in the linear regression (R2 = 0.176) and was reduced by 20 min less per day in MVPA in the winter months compared with the summer months ( p < .0001). Conclusions: Physical activity levels are already in decline from 6–7 years old and are likely to continue to decline into adolescence. Interventions must therefore focus on primary school children.


Retos ◽  
2015 ◽  
pp. 48-52
Author(s):  
Joaquín Reverter Masià ◽  
Dani Plaza Montero ◽  
María del Carmen Jové Deltell ◽  
Vicenç Hernández González

En los últimos años se está creando un importante problema de sedentarismo en la infancia. A la hora de diseñar programas de intervención para fomentar la práctica de actividad física es necesario obtener información precisa sobre los niveles de práctica de la población infantil así como de los posibles determinantes de la práctica. Para ello se ha diseñado un estudio donde se evalúan los niveles de práctica de niños y niñas de 6 a 12 años de actividad física. Las conclusiones que se desprenden del estudio realizado son: un alto porcentaje de sujetos no realizan ejercicio físico (34,4%), observándose diferencias entre niños y niñas; se puede afirmar que las niñas practican menos que los niños (35,4% versus 24,9%). Por otro lado, el porcentaje de sujetos físicamente activos es de un 31,2% cuando se considera la recomendación más extendida, de tres o más horas a la semana. Los resultados obtenidos confirman la necesidad de incentivar programas de intervención en niños y jóvenes, aconsejando la práctica de actividad física, prestando especial interés a las chicas.Palabras clave: Salud. Actividad física. Deportes. Niños y adolescentes.Abstract: In recent years, is creating a major problem of physical inactivity in childhood. To design intervention programs that promote physical activity is necessary to obtain accurate information about levels of practice of the child population as well as the possible determinants of the practice. This was carried out a cross-sectional and descriptive. The sample is representative of students attending school in the city of Torrevieja and was selected by a pro rata basis. Participants in the study were 1248 students from thirteen primary schools offering primary education in the city of Torrevieja. The study evaluated physical activity levels of children aged 6 to 12 years. The instrument used in this study is a questionnaire (Latorre, 2006). The version used shows adequate factorial structure (Latorre, 2006). It is an instrument designed to assess the variables of healthy lifestyle among young people and teenagers. The results confirm the need to provide adequate education about healthy lifestyles and enhance the development of intervention programs for children and youth, counseling on diet and physical activity with particular interest in the girls, who are less physically active group and increased risk of disorders.Keywords: Health. Physical activity. Sports. Children and adolescents.


Author(s):  
Gabriela Togni ◽  
Paulo José Puccinelli ◽  
Taline Costa ◽  
Aldo Seffrin ◽  
Claudio Andre Barbosa de Lira ◽  
...  

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected physical activity levels. This study investigated the factors associated with the change in physical activity level in Brazilians residing in the city of São Paulo. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire, addressing personal data, restriction level, education level, family income, daily working hours, and physical activity level, was answered by 2140 volunteers, of which 1179 were excluded because the answers were either incomplete or the respondents were not from São Paulo. The total number of participants selected was 961 (581 female and 380 male). Results: The physical activity level adopted prior to the pandemic period (p < 0.001) and family income (p = 0.001) correlated significantly with physical activity level reduction during the pandemic. The proportion of people who reduced their physical activity was greater among those who were very active than those who were active (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR]: 0.65 [confidence interval (CI): 0.52–0.80]) or insufficiently active [aPR: 0.39 (0.18–0.82)]. The proportion of people who reduced their physical activity was greater among those who received a salary less than minimum wage (MW) than those who received a salary between three to six times minimum wage [(aPR: 0.50 (CI 0.35–0.70)] or more than 6 MW [(aPR: 0.56 (CI 0.40–0.79)]. Conclusions: A higher prevalence of Brazilians residing in the city of São Paulo reduced their physical activity who had a vigorous level of physical activity prior to the pandemic and who received less than a MW.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document