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Bidirectional Association Between Movement Behavior Composition and Body Composition in Children With Motor
Matthew Bourke1, Kathryn Fortnum1, Martin O'Flaherty1
1Health and Wellbeing Centre for Research Innovation, School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Insights
Children with higher body fat prospectively engage in less healthy movement behaviors. Body composition may influence future movement, highlighting the need for interventions in children with overweight or obesity.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric health
- Movement science
- Childhood obesity
Background:
- Established cross-sectional links between movement behaviors and child body composition.
- Lack of evidence on the directionality of these associations.
- Need to understand associations in children with and without motor coordination difficulties.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine bidirectional associations between wake-time movement behaviors and body composition in children.
- To determine if these associations differ between children with typical motor development and motor coordination difficulties.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of 475 children (aged 4-5 years at baseline) over 3 years.
- Objective measurement of movement behaviors (sedentary time, light and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity) using accelerometers.
- Assessment of body composition (BMI z-scores, waist circumference, body fat percentage) and motor coordination.
Main Results:
- Higher baseline body mass index z-scores, waist circumference, and body fat percentage predicted less healthy movement behavior compositions (more sedentary time, less moderate-to-vigorous physical activity) 3 years later.
- Overall movement behavior compositions did not prospectively predict body composition.
- Associations did not differ significantly between children with typical motor development and those with motor coordination difficulties.
Conclusions:
- Childhood body composition appears to influence subsequent movement behaviors.
- Interventions targeting children with overweight or obesity are crucial for promoting healthy movement behaviors.
- Addressing disparities in movement behaviors is important for long-term health outcomes.
Background:
The cross-sectional association between movement behaviors and body composition in children is well established, but evidence of directionality is lacking. This study examined bidirectional associations between wake-time movement behavior and body composition and whether associations differed between children with typical motor development and motor coordination difficulties.
Methods:
Waist-worn accelerometers assessed sedentary time, light-intensity physical activity, and moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity at baseline (aged 4-5 y) and annually for 3 years among 475 children from the Coordination and Activity Tracking in CHildren cohort study (n = 175 with motor coordination difficulty, n = 283 boys). Annual assessments included height, weight, waist circumference, percentage body fat via bioelectric impedance analysis, and motor coordination using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition. Wake-time movement behaviors were expressed as isometric log-ratio coordinates, and associations with body composition were examined using cross-lagged panel models of compositional data, including compositional isotemporal substitution analysis.
Results:
Children with higher body mass index z scores, larger waist circumference, and higher body fat percentage prospectively engaged in less healthy movement behavior compositions characterized by more sedentary time and less moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity. Overall movement behavior compositions were not significantly prospectively related to body composition, although several specific isotemporal substitution associations were observed. Estimated associations did not significantly differ between children with typical motor development and those with motor coordination difficulties.
Conclusion:
These findings suggest that children's body composition may influence future movement behaviors, demonstrating the importance of behavior change interventions targeting children with overweight or obesity to promote healthy movement behavior combinations and overcome widening disparities over time.
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