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Physical activity and clustered cardiovascular disease risk factors in young children: a cross-sectional study (the
David Jiménez-Pavón1, Kenn Konstabel, Patrick Bergman
1Department of Physiotherapy and Nursing, School of Health Sciences, University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain. davidj@unizar.es
Insights
Physical activity (PA) significantly reduces cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in children, especially those over 6. Recommendations include 60-85 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA daily, with 20 minutes of vigorous activity.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Cardiovascular Disease Prevention
- Public Health
Background:
- Physical activity (PA) is crucial for mitigating cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in children.
- Limited large-scale studies have examined PA's association with CVD risk factors in children aged 9 years and younger.
- This study addresses this gap by analyzing objectively measured PA and clustered CVD risk in a substantial European cohort.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the association between objectively measured PA and clustered CVD risk factors in European children aged 2-9 years.
- To provide evidence-based, gender-specific PA recommendations for children.
- To investigate age-specific differences in the PA-CVD risk relationship.
Main Methods:
- Utilized cross-sectional data from the longitudinal IDEFICS study, including 3,120 children aged 2-9 years.
- Calculated two age- and gender-specific clustered CVD risk scores: a continuous score (CRFs) and a score including cardiorespiratory fitness (CRFs + fit) for older children.
- Variables included blood pressure, lipid profiles, insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), skinfolds, and cardiorespiratory fitness.
Main Results:
- In boys under 6, the least active quintile showed significantly elevated odds ratios (OR) for CVD risk (OR: 2.58).
- For older children (≥6 years), higher levels of inactivity were associated with substantially increased OR for CVD risk (CRFs + fit score): ORs ranged from 2.69 to 5.40 in boys and 2.85 to 7.05 in girls.
- The association between PA and reduced CVD risk was more consistent in children older than 6 years.
Conclusions:
- Objectively measured PA is vital for preventing the clustering of CVD risk factors in young children.
- The protective effect of PA is more pronounced and consistent in children older than 6 years.
- Healthcare professionals should advocate for approximately 60-85 minutes of daily moderate-to-vigorous PA, incorporating at least 20 minutes of vigorous activity.
Background:
The relevance of physical activity (PA) for combating cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in children has been highlighted, but to date there has been no large-scale study analyzing that association in children aged ≤9 years of age. This study sought to evaluate the associations between objectively-measured PA and clustered CVD risk factors in a large sample of European children, and to provide evidence for gender-specific recommendations of PA.
Methods:
Cross-sectional data from a longitudinal study in 16,224 children aged 2 to 9 were collected. Of these, 3,120 (1,016 between 2 to 6 years, 2,104 between 6 to 9 years) had sufficient data for inclusion in the current analyses. Two different age-specific and gender-specific clustered CVD risk scores associated with PA were determined. First, a CVD risk factor (CRF) continuous score was computed using the following variables: systolic blood pressure (SBP), total triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC)/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) ratio, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and sum of two skinfolds (score CRFs). Secondly, another CVD risk score was obtained for older children containing the score CRFs + the cardiorespiratory fitness variable (termed score CRFs + fit). Data used in the current analysis were derived from the IDEFICS ('Identification and prevention of Dietary- and lifestyle-induced health EFfects In Children and infantS') study.
Results:
In boys <6 years, the odds ratios (OR) for CVD risk were elevated in the least active quintile of PA (OR: 2.58) compared with the most active quintile as well as the second quintile for vigorous PA (OR: 2.91). Compared with the most active quintile, older children in the first, second and third quintiles had OR for CVD risk score CRFs + fit ranging from OR 2.69 to 5.40 in boys, and from OR 2.85 to 7.05 in girls.
Conclusions:
PA is important to protect against clustering of CVD risk factors in young children, being more consistent in those older than 6 years. Healthcare professionals should recommend around 60 and 85 min/day of moderate-to-vigorous PA, including 20 min/day of vigorous PA.
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