Physical activity assessment in American Indian schoolchildren in the Pathways study

Area of Science:

• Pediatric obesity prevention
• Physical activity assessment
• School-based health interventions

Background:

• School-based obesity prevention programs require accurate methods to measure physical activity.
• Comparing physical activity between intervention and control groups is crucial for evaluating program effectiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and assess feasible methods for comparing physical activity type and amount in children.
• To support the Pathways physical activity feasibility study within a school-based obesity prevention program.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a specially designed 24-hour physical activity recall questionnaire to assess activity frequency and type.
• Employed a triaxial accelerometer to objectively measure the amount of physical activity.
• Conducted pilot studies to validate the feasibility of these assessment methods.

Main Results:

• Both the physical activity recall questionnaire and triaxial accelerometer proved feasible for data collection.
• Children exhibited the highest levels of physical activity during after-school hours.
• Frequently reported activities, such as basketball and mixed walking/running, aligned with popular choices identified in surveys.

Conclusions:

• The developed questionnaire and accelerometer methods are suitable for assessing physical activity in school-based obesity prevention studies.
• These methods will be instrumental in evaluating the full-scale intervention's impact on children's physical activity levels.