Primary healthcare and the battle against childhood physical inactivity and obesity

The physical activity pandemic is of particular concern with regard to children. Catherine Elliot of Lincoln University, New Zealand, Lee Stoner of Massey University, New Zealand, Michael Hamlin of Lincoln University and Mark Stoutenberg of the University of Miami, USA, consider the role of primary healthcare in the fight against childhood physical inactivity and obesity

Gender differences and determinants of aerobic fitness in children aged 8-11 years.

Previous studies of gender differences in maximum oxygen uptake have come to different conclusions. Limited data exists where the determinants of maximum oxygen uptake have been evaluated in a comprehensive manner. Thus, we examined 248 children (140 boys and 108 girls), aged 7.9-11.1 years. Body composition was determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, measured variables were total body fat (TBF) and lean body mass (LBM). Maximal oxygen uptake (VO2peak) was measured by indirect calorimetry during a maximal cycle exercise test. Daily physical activity was assessed by accelerometers and duration of vigorous activity per day (VPA) was calculated. Left ventricular inner diastolic diameter (LVDD) was measured by echocardiography. Lung function was evaluated with spirometric testing and whole body plethysmography. Boys had between 8 and 18% higher values than girls for VO2peak, dependent upon whether VO2peak was expressed in absolute values or scaled to body mass, LBM or if allometric scaling was used. In multiple regression analysis absolute values of aerobic fitness were independently related to LBM, maximal heart rate (Max HR), gender, LVDD, and VPA. Furthermore, when VO2peak was scaled to body mass it was independently related to In TBF, Max HR, gender, VPA, and LVDD. Lung function had no relation to VO2peak. Our study concludes that body composition is the main predictor for VO2peak, in children aged 8-11 years, whereas VPA or LVDD has only a modest impact. Existing gender differences in VO2peak cannot be explained only by differences in body composition, physical activity, or heart size

Domains of Daily Physical Activity in Children with Mitochondrial Disease: A 3D Accelerometry Approach

Feasible, sensitive and clinically relevant outcome measures are of extreme importance when designing clinical trials. For paediatric mitochondrial disease, no robust end point has been described to date. The aim of this study was to select the domains of daily physical activity, which can be measured by 3D accelerometry, that could serve as sensitive end points in future clinical trials in children with mitochondrial disorders.In this exploratory observational study, 17 patients with mitochondrial disease and 16 age- and sex-matched controls wore 3D accelerometers at the upper leg, upper arm, lower arm and chest during one weekend. Using the raw data obtained by the accelerometers, we calculated the following outcome measures: (1) average amount of counts per hour the sensors were worn; (2) the maximal intensity; (3) the largest area under the curve during 30 min and (4) categorized activities lying, standing or being dynamically active. Measuring physical activity during the whole weekend was practically feasible in all participants. We found good face validity by visually correlating the validation videos and activity diaries to the accelerometer data-graphs. Patients with mitochondrial disorders had significantly lower peak intensity and were resting more, compared to their age- and sex-matched peers.Finally, we suggest domains of physical activity that could be included when measuring daily physical activity in children with mitochondrial disorders, preferably using more user-friendly devices. These include peak activity parameters for the arms (all patients) and legs (ambulatory patients). We recommend using or developing devices that measure these domains of physical activity in future clinical studies

Sobrepeso e obesidade em escolares brasileiros de sete a nove anos: dados do projeto Esporte Brasil Overweight and obesity in seven to nine-year-old Brazilian students: data from the Brazilian Sports Project

OBJETIVO: Descrever a prevalência de sobrepeso e obesidade em escolares brasileiros de sete a nove anos e verificar a associação com as variáveis: sexo, idade e região geográfica. MÉTODOS: Estudo epidemiológico transversal conduzido em 2.913 escolares (1.478 do sexo masculino e 1.435 do feminino) com idade entre sete e nove anos. Como critério de diagnóstico de sobrepeso e obesidade foram utilizados os pontos de corte do índice de massa corpórea, propostos pela International Obesity Task Force. A comparação entre as proporções foi realizada mediante o teste qui-quadrado. As diferenças entre as proporções foram testadas por meio do teste de comparação entre duas proporções. RESULTADOS: A prevalência de sobrepeso e obesidade foi de 15,4 e 7,8% em meninos e meninas, respectivamente, com proporções similares entre sexo e idades. No sexo masculino, foi verificada associação do sobrepeso e obesidade apenas com região geográfica (p<0,001), com prevalências mais elevadas nas crianças da região Sul. No feminino, sobrepeso mais elevado foi observado nas crianças de sete anos da região Norte, enquanto a prevalência de obesidade foi maior nas crianças da região Sul. CONCLUSÕES: As crianças da região Sul apresentam maiores prevalências de sobrepeso e obesidade que aquelas das demais regiões do país. Os achados do presente estudo apontam uma tendência de aumento na prevalência de sobrepeso e obesidade na infância e corroboram os resultados encontrados em pesquisas mais abrangentes realizadas no Brasil.<br>OBJECTIVES: To describe the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Brazilian schoolchildren aged 7 to 9 years and determine its association with gender, age and geographic region. METHODS: This cross-sectional epidemiological study enrolled 2,913 students (1,478 boys and 1,435 girls) aged 7 to 9 years and was conducted between 2004 and 2005. The body mass index cutoff values proposed by the International Obesity Task Force were used as a diagnostic criterion for overweight and obesity. The chi-square test was used for comparison of proportions, and differences in prevalence rates were determined by testing for comparison between two proportions. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 15.4% and 7.8% in boys and girls, respectively, with similar proportions in both genders and across all ages. In boys, overweight and obesity were only associated with geographic region (p<0.001), with a higher prevalence found in children from the South region. In girls, the prevalence of overweight was highest among those aged 7 years and those from the North region. In addition, an overall higher prevalence of obesity was observed among children from the South region. CONCLUSIONS: Schoolchildren from the South region of Brazil have a higher prevalence of overweight and obesity than those from other areas of the country. We conclude that overweight and obesity in childhood are on an upward trend, and our findings corroborate the results reported in other Brazilian studies