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Physical activity and sedentary lifestyle in children with type 1 diabetes: a multicentre Italian study
Valentina Fainardi1, Chiara Scarabello, Antonia Cangelosi
1Department of Paediatrics, University of Parma, Parma, Italy.
Background:
Regular Physical Activity (RPA) is one of the cornerstones of Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) therapy, but conflicting results are reported in the literature.
Aim:
To compare (RPA) and Sedentary Lifestyle (SL) among children with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and healthy peers.
Subjects And Methods:
Seven Italian paediatric diabetes centres enrolled 129 children with T1D and 214 healthy peers who were interviewed by a telephone questionnaire on physical activity level, sedentary lifestyle and clinical data.
Results:
Compared to healthy peers, children with T1D: performed the same amount of RPA, were more frequently engaged in team sports (p = 0.018), described RPA as an enjoyable activity (p = 0.033), not boring (p = 0.035), a chance to spend time with peers (p = 0.033) and to meet new friends (p = 0.016). Children with T1D were finally used to consume less snacks during watching TV (p < 0.001) or after physical activity (p < 0.001 ). HbA1c values were not related with time spent in physical activity, in watching TV or in playing video-games.
Conclusions:
Most interviewed children with T1D are physically active and perform the same amount of exercise as their healthy peers. They demonstrate to consider RPA a source of enjoyment and sociality and not a therapeutic imposition. (www.actabiomedica.it)
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