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Urban Versus Rural Differences in Meeting 24-h Movement Behaviour Guidelines Among 3-4-Year-Olds: An Analysis of
Jackline J Nusurupia1,2, Leyna H Germana1, Pujitha Wickramasinghe3
1Department of Community, Health and Nutrition, Tanzania Food and Nutrition Centre, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Insights
Few young children in low- and middle-income countries meet World Health Organization 24-hour movement guidelines. This study found no significant differences in meeting physical activity, sleep, screen time, or restraint guidelines between urban and rural 3-4-year-olds.
Area of Science:
- Global Public Health
- Pediatric Health
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Young children's insufficient physical activity, excessive screen time, and short sleep are global health concerns.
- Limited data exist on adherence to World Health Organization (WHO) 24-hour movement behavior guidelines in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
- The relationship between urbanization and young children's movement behaviors in LMICs is largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine differences in meeting WHO 24-hour movement behavior guidelines among 3-4-year-old children in urban versus rural settings within LMICs.
- To assess the prevalence of children meeting guidelines for physical activity, sleep duration, screen time, and sedentary behavior.
Main Methods:
- The SUNRISE Study included 429 child/parent dyads aged 3-4 years from 10 LMICs.
- Objective measurement of physical activity and sleep duration using accelerometers (activPAL) for at least 48 hours.
- Parental questionnaires assessed screen time and time spent restrained; chi-square tests compared urban and rural adherence.
Main Results:
- 17% met physical activity, 57% met sleep, 50% met screen time, and 84% met restraint guidelines.
- Only 4% of children met all combined WHO 24-hour movement guidelines.
- No significant differences were observed in meeting any of the guidelines between urban and rural children.
Conclusions:
- A small proportion of young children in both urban and rural LMICs adhere to WHO 24-hour movement guidelines.
- Interventions to improve children's movement behaviors in LMICs should target both urban and rural populations.
- Further research is needed to understand factors influencing movement behaviors across diverse settings in LMICs.
Background:
Insufficient physical activity, excessive screen time and short sleep duration among young children are global public health concerns; however, data on prevalence of meeting World Health Organisation 24-h movement behaviour guidelines for 3-4-year-old children in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are limited, and it is unknown whether urbanisation is related to young children's movement behaviours. The present study examined differences in prevalence of meeting 24-h movement behaviour guidelines among 3-4-year-old children living in urban versus rural settings in LMICs.
Methods:
The SUNRISE Study recruited 429, 3-4-year-old child/parent dyads from 10 LMICs. Children wore activPAL accelerometers continuously for at least 48 h to assess their physical activity and sleep duration. Screen time and time spent restrained were assessed via parent questionnaire. Differences in prevalence of meeting guidelines between urban- and rural-dwelling children were examined using chi-square tests.
Results:
Physical activity guidelines were met by 17% of children (14% urban vs. 18% rural), sleep guidelines by 57% (61% urban vs. 54% rural), screen time guidelines by 50% (50% urban vs. 50% rural), restrained guidelines by 84% (81% urban vs. 86% rural) and all guidelines combined by 4% (4% urban vs.4% rural). We found no significant differences in meeting the guidelines between urban and rural areas.
Conclusions:
Only a small proportion of children in both rural and urban settings met the WHO 24-h movement guidelines. Strategies to improve movement behaviours in LMICs should consider including both rural and urban settings.
