Medidas diretas de atividade física em crianças e cumprimento das recomendações da Organização Mundial de Saúde

Os objetivos deste estudo foram verificar a quantidade e intensidade de prática de atividade física (AF) em crianças de baixo nível socioeconômico, e avaliar o cumprimento das recomendações da Organização Mundial de Saúde (AF moderada a vigorosa ≥ 60 minutos diários) nos dias de semana e finais de semana. Participaram do estudo 174 crianças (49% meninas) entre 7 e 10 anos de idade, residentes em área de vulnerabilidade social. O tempo e intensidade da AF foram medidos com acelerômetros (wGT3X+), durante 7 dias consecutivos, e para caracterizar a AF moderada a vigorosa (AFMV) foi utilizado um ponto de corte ≥ 2296 contagens por minuto. As comparações entre os sexos foram realizadas por meio da Análise de Variância, utilizando-se ainda o Teste t para medidas dependentes para as comparações entre a AFMV praticada durante a semana e os finais de semana, e o teste qui-quadrado para verificar as associações entre as variáveis sexo e cumprimento das diretrizes internacionais de atividade física. Em média, os meninos realizaram mais AFMV do que as meninas (p < 0,01), tanto em dias de semana (77 x 58 minutos por dia) como nos finais de semana (71 x 50 minutos por dia). Durante os dias de semana, 59% das crianças atingiram as recomendações (72% dos meninos e 42% das meninas; p < 0,001) e apenas 47% (57% dos meninos e 34% das meninas; p < 0,001) atingiramas recomendações durante os finais de semana. Esses dados reforçam a necessidade de ampliação da oferta de atividades físicas voltadas à realidade sociocultural da criança, com atenção especial para as meninas e para um maior envolvimento das famílias, particularmente durante os finais de semana

Growth, maturation and development during childhood and adolescence: Implications for sports practice

Human development emerges from the interactions between environmental and biological factors. This review focuses on the relationship between biological development and environmental experiences during infancy and adolescence and their implications for motor skill acquisition. During infancy, as a consequence of the accelerated development of the central nervous system, it is fundamental that a vast and adequate variation in environmental stimuli is supplied, favoring motor, cognitive and affective-social domains. In adolescence, biological alterations are associated with peaking testosterone and estradiol hormone production in males and females respectively and it is necessary to adjust motor stimulation to biological maturation and previous experiences. Motor skill acquisition during infancy has an important relation to continuity of physical activity in later years and the practice of sports in adolescence and adulthood, favoring both the blossoming of athletes and promotion of health in general population

<b>Indicators of physical fitness in school children from the midwest region of São Paulo City</b>

The objectives of this study were: a) to evaluate indicators of physical fitness in childrenand adolescents according to chronological age and gender; b) to classify their performanceusing the PROESP-BR normative tables. A total of 3145 randomly selected school children (1590boys and 1555 girls), ranging in age from 7 to 16 years, were submitted to the following tests:distance covered in a 9-minute run, standing long jump test, medicine-ball throw, and 60-s situptest to measure abdominal muscle endurance. Significant differences were observed betweengenders at all chronological ages and also between boys of different chronological ages. In girls,no significant differences were observed between chronological ages, with performance tendingto stabilize at 11/12 years of age. Classification of the participants according to the PROESP-BRnormative tables showed that more than 50% of all subjects were below the 40th percentile in alltests, especially girls. The same tendency was observed when compared to other Brazilian studies.Considering mean values, it can be concluded that the school children studied, especially girls,presented a low level of physical fitness, thus indicating the need for health promotion programsin the midwest region of São Paulo City addressing physical activity